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STUDIES 

•S>  <**  ®  of  <a  < 

FAMILIAR' 
HYMNS 

4  *  ♦  By  « 

LOUIS  F.BENSON,D.D. 


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ftian  Pfalmody^  by  the  Ufeof  E- 
vangelical  Hymns  in  Worftup^  as 

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ii 


TITLE-PAGE  OF  THE  FIRST  EDITION  OF  WATTS’S  “HYMNS 


STUDIES 

OF 

FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


BY 

LOUIS  F.  BENSON,  D.D.  ’ 

Editor  of  “The  Hymnal,  Published  by  Authority  of  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the 
U.  S.  A.,”  “The  Hymnal  for  Use  in  Congregational 
Churches,”  “The  Chapel  Hymnal,” 
and  “The  School  Hymnal” 


* 


PHILADELPHIA 

THE  WESTMINSTER  PRESS 

1  9  °3 


Copyright,  1903 

By  LOUIS  F.  BENSON 


Published  March,  igoj 


z^s 

%■ 


PREFACE 


When  Dr.  Ray  Palmer,  late  in  life,  came  to  narrate 
the  origin  of  his  youthful  hymn,  “  My  Faith  Looks  Up 
to  Thee,”  he  explained  that  he  would  feel  no  little  delicacy 
in  so  doing,  “  were  it  not  that  in  one  way  and  another  it 
has  happened  that  very  inaccurate,  and  in  some  instances 
wholly  apocryphal,  things  have  been  reported  concerning 
it.  It  has  furnished  quite  a  striking  illustration  of  the 
difficulty  of  transmitting  verbally,  with  entire  accuracy, 
a  few  simple  facts,  from  one  person  to  another.”  “  Slight 
inaccuracies,  rhetorical  statements,  and  the  imaginations 
of  writers  or  speakers,”  he  goes  on  to  say,  “  have  some¬ 
times  combined  to  form  quite  an  unauthentic  history  of 
its  origin.” 

Dr.  Palmer’s  chagrin  over  the  literature  setting  forth 
the  history  of  his  own  hymn  appears  to  have  been  shared, 
measurably,  by  many  readers  of  the  popular  literature 
setting  forth  the  history  of  the  hymns  in  which  they 
themselves  happen  to  be  interested.  The  frankness  also 
of  Dr.  Palmer’s  criticism  has  been  emulated  by  them — 
a  frankness  which  has  fulfilled  itself  (one  would  hope)  in 

vii 

s 

O. 


209266 


Vlll 


PREFACE 


expressing  the  opinion  that  the  desire  to  tell  a  good 
story,  the  ambition  to  furnish  a  racy  anecdote  for  homi- 
letical  purposes,  is  coupled,  at  times,  with  a  weakening 
hold  upon  the  realities. 

’Twere  pity  if  ’twere  true :  and  the  present  writer  is 
not  solicitous  to  defend  all  that  he  has  read  upon  the 
history  of  our  hymns.  Yet  he  would  venture  the  remark 
(though  it  be  no  more  than  a  plea  of  confession  and 
avoidance)  that  the  telling  of  the  true  story  of  a  hymn  is 
not  so  simple  a  task  as  some  readers  may  have  assumed 
it  to  be,  but  is,  on  the  contrary,  an  undertaking  requiring 
patient  investigation  at  first  hand. 

One  does  not  know  the  history  of  a  hymn  till  he  has 
traced  it  to  its  source  and  studied  its  original  text  and 
surroundings ;  till  he  has  worked  over  its  bearings,  bio¬ 
graphical  and  hymnological,  and  has  tracked  its  subse¬ 
quent  career,  textual  and  liturgical,  by  actual  handling 
of  the  hymnals  and  other  books  in  which  it  appears ; 
till  he  has  sought  out  and  scanned  such  landmarks  as 
remain  to  testify  to  its  spiritual  history,  its  use  and  influ¬ 
ence  over  men. 

Such  investigations  involve  the  pains  of  gathering,  or 
of  finding  access  to,  extensive  collections  of  hymn  books, 
books  of  poetry,  biographies,  fugitive  publications,  and 
material  of  many  sorts.  A  tedious  task,  no  doubt,  unless 
lightened  by  love !  That  some  who  have  felt  the  call  to 
narrate  the  story  of  our  hymns  have  sought  the  goal 
by  a  shorter  road  affords,  it  may  be,  an  explanation  of 


PREFACE 


IX 


the  “  apocrypha  ”  and  the  “  anecdotage  ”  of  popular 
hymnology. 

Contemplating  the  simplicity  of  the  results  of  his  studies 
of  familiar  hymns  as  set  forth  in  this  book,  the  writer  is 
almost  ashamed  thus  to  hint  at  the  care  of  his  prepara¬ 
tion.  It  had  been  better,  possibly,  simply  to  say  that 
while  he  has  tried  to  be  interesting,  he  has  tried  yet  more 
to  be  trustworthy. 

The  general  character  and  purpose  of  these  Studies  is 
explained  by  their  origin.  This  book  grew  out  of  a 
series  of  six  papers  (expanding,  under  encouragement,  to 
twenty-five)  written  for  Forward  and  The  Wellspring,  the 
admirable  periodicals  of  the  Presbyterian  and  Congrega¬ 
tional  publishing  houses,  designed  for  young  people  and 
the  family.  For  the  book  these  Studies  have  been  re¬ 
written  to  a  somewhat  larger  scale,  but  with  an  effort 
not  to  sacrifice  too  much  of  their  original  simplicity.  The 
fact  of  their  origin  explains  also  the  appending  to  each 
Study  of  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion  ” :  the  hope 
having  been  (it  still  abides)  that  groups  or  societies  of 
young  people  might  be  led  to  think  over  and  discuss  the 
message  of  the  hymns  they  so  often  sing,  sometimes,  it 
may  be,  too  thoughtlessly. 

Between  the  hymns  here  studied  there  is  no  intended 
connection  ;  each  hymn  being  chosen  for  its  own  sake — 
for  some  distinction  it  had,  but  with  an  eye  at  the  same 
time  upon  the  veracious  material  for  illustrating  it  at  the 
writer’s  command.  For  that  reason  a  chronological 


X 


PREFACE 


arrangement  of  the  Studies  has  been  avoided,  and  none 
other  has  been  sought,  except  in  so  far  as  giving  prece¬ 
dence  to  some  Study  precludes  repetition  in  one  coming 
after.  It  pleased  the  writer’s  fancy  that  the  book  should 
begin  in  the  Light  that  dawned  on  Bethlehem  and  should 
end  at  Sunset  and  Evening  Star. 

The  text  of  the  hymns,  in  every  case,  is  that  of  The 
Hymnal  now  widely  used  in  Presbyterian  and  Congrega¬ 
tional  churches.  To  that  book  reference  is  also  made 
in  the  case  of  hymns  merely  cited;  a  course  sufficiently 
justified  (if  for  no  other  reason)  by  the  convenience  of 
having  a  common  standard. 


CONTENTS 


hi. 

/  IV. 


v. 

VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

IX. 


X. 


XI. 


PAGE 

O  Little  Town  of  Bethlehem  ( Phillips 
Brooks ) .  i 

Stand  Up,  Stand  Up  for  Jesus  ( George 
Duffield)  . . 13 

Sun  of  My  Soul,  Thou  Saviour  Dear  {John 
Keble ) . 25 

How  Firm  a  Foundation,  Ye  Saints  of  the 
Lord  ( K - ) . 37 

i 

Lord,  with  Glowing  Heart  I’d  Praise 
Thee  {Francis  Scott  Key) . 51 

From  Greenland’s  Icy  Mountains  {Reginald 


Heber) . 63 

My  Faith  Looks  Up  to  Thee  {Ray  Ra/mer)  75 

Lead,  Kindly  Light,  Amid  the  Encircling 
Gloom  {John  Fdenry  Newman )  ....  85 

My  Country,  ’tis  of  Thee  {Samuel  Francis 
Smith) . 97 

Onward,  Christian  Soldiers  {Sabine  Baring- 
Gould) . 107 

Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee  {Sarah  Flower 
Adams) . 117 


XI 


CONTENTS 


•  • 
Xll 


XII. 

When  I  Survey  the  Wondrous  Cross  {Isaac 
Watts) . 

PAGE 

127 

XIII. 

0  Still  in  Accents  Sweet  and  Strong 
( Samuel  Longfellow) . 

137 

<fg) 

Jesus  Christ  is  Risen  To-day  ( Composite ). 

147 

XV. 

A  Mighty  Fortress  is  Our  God  (. Martin 
Luther.  Translated  by  Frederic  Henry  Hedge) 

*55 

XVI. 

Abide  with  Me  :  Fast  Falls  the  Eventide 
{Henry  Francis  Lyte) . 

169 

XVII. 

God  Bless  our  Native  Land  {attributed  to 
Charles  T.  Brooks  and  John  S.  Dwight) 

1 79 

XVIII. 

Father  of  Mercies,  in  Thy  Word  {Anne 
Steele) . 

191 

XIX. 

0  Day  of  Rest  and  Gladness  {Christopher 
Wordsworth) . 

201 

XX. 

Take  my  Life,  and  Let  it  Be  {Frances  Ridley 
Havergal) .  .... 

21 1 

XXI. 

I  Would  Not  Live  Alway;  I  Ask  Not  to 
Stay  ( William  Augustus  Muhlenberg)  . 

221 

XXII. 

O  Help  us,  Lord  ;  Each  Hour  of  Need 
{Henry  Hart  Milman) . 

233 

XXIII. 

Shepherd  of  Tender  Youth  (  Clement.  Trans¬ 
lated  by  Henry  Martyn  Dexter)  .... 

243 

XXIV. 

Thine  For  Ever  !  God  of  Love  {Mary 
Fawler  Maude) . 

253 

XXV. 

Sunset  and  Evening  Star  {Lord  Tennyson)  . 

263 

LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

Facsimile  of  the  Title-page  of  the  First  Edition 
of  Watts’s  “Hymns” . Frontispiece 

Autograph  Verses  of  “  O  Little  Town  of  Bethlehem  ”  3,  1 1 


From  the  original  manuscript  in  the  possession  of  George  C. 
Thomas ,  Esq. 

Lewis  H.  Redner .  5 

From  a  photograph  by  Mulnier ,  Paris. 

Autograph  Staff  of  the  Tune  “St.  Louis”  ....  7 

Phillips  Brooks .  9 

From  a  photograph ,  loaned  by  Mr.  Redner. 

Dudley  A.  Tyng .  15 

From  an  engraving ,  loaned  by  Mr.  John  P.  Rhoads. 

George  Duffield .  19 

From  Mitchell' s  “  History  of  Temple  Presbyterian  Church  P 

Autograph  Verse  of  “Stand  Up,  Stand  Up  for  Jesus  ”  23 

Autograph  Verses  of  “Sun  of  My  Soul” .  27 

Fro?n  “  A  Facsimile  Reproduction  of  the  First  Form  of 
Keble’ s  Christian  Year.” 

John  Keble .  31 

From  an  engraving  by  F.  Halpin,  after  G.  Richmond. 

Facsimile  of  the  Frontispiece  to  “Rippon’s  Selec¬ 
tion”  .  39 

Facsimile  of  the  Page  from  “Rippon’s  Selection” 

CONTAINING  “  HOW  FlRM  A  FOUNDATION” .  4 1 

xiii 


XIV 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

Autograph  Verse  of  “Lord,  with  Glowing  Heart 

I’d  Praise  Thee”  . 51 

Francis  S.  Key .  57 

Autograph  Verses  of  “From  Greenland’s  Icy  Moun¬ 
tains”  .  65 

Reginald  Heber .  69 

From  an  engraving  by  T.  Woolnolh ,  after  a  painting  by 
T.  Phillips. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “My  Faith  Looks  Up  to  Thee”  79 

Ray  Palmer .  83 

From  an  engraving  by  H.  IV.  Smith ,  after  a  photograph  by 
Sarony. 

John  Henry  Newman . .  87 

From  an  English  engraving. 

Autograph  Lines  of  “Lead,  Kindly  Light”  ....  91 

Cardinal  Newman .  95 

From  a  photograph. 

Autograph  of  “My  Country,  ’tis  of  Thee”  ....  100 

Samuel  F.  Smith  . 103 

From  a  photograph  by  Soule  Photograph  Co. 

Autograph  Verses  of  “Onward,  Christian  Soldiers”  iii 

Sabine  Baring-Gould  . 113 

From  a  photograph  by  Elliott  and  Fry. 

Sarah  F.  Adams . 121 

From  the  Strand  Magazine. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee”  .  123 

Autograph  Memoranda  of  Dr.  Watts . 131 

From  Paxton  Hood's  11  Isaac  Watts." 

Isaac  Watts .  1 33 

From  an  old  mezzotint,  after  an  original  portrait.  n 

The  Longfellow  House,  Portland . 139 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS  XV 

PAGE 

Samuel  Longfellow . 14 1 

Autograph  Verses  of  “  O  Still  in  Accents  Sweet  and 
Strong” . 145 

A  Page  from  “Lyra  Davidica  ” . 150 

Martin  Luther . 157 

From  an  engraving,  after  a  portrait  by  Cranach. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “A  Mighty  Fortress  is  Our 
God” . 162 

Frederic  Ft.  Hedge . 165 

From  a  photograph  furnished  by  Mr.  F.  II.  Hedge. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “Abide  with  Me” . 171 

Henry  F.  Lyte . 175 

After  a  painting. 

Autograph  Poem  of  Charles  T.  Brooks . 182 

Autograph  Verse  of  John  S.  Dwight . 184 

Charles  T.  Brooks . 187 

From  a  photograph. 

John  S.  Dwight . 189 

Autograph  Verses  of  “Father  of  Mercies,  in  Thy 
Word” . 193 

Miss  Steele’s  Birthplace . 197 

Miss  Steele’s  Bible . 199 

These  are  reproduced  from  Rev.  W.  Garrett  Horded  s 
“ Anne  Steele  and  Her  Hymns F 

Christopher  Wordsworth . 203 

From  an  English  engraving. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “O  Day  of  Rest  and  Gladness”  207 

Autograph  Lines  of  “Take  My  Life,  and  Let  it  Be”  213 

Frances  R.  Havergal . .  .  215 

From  a  photograph  by  Elliott  and  Fry. 


XVI 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

Autograph  Verses  of  “  I  Would  Not  Live  Alway  ”  .  225 

Title-page  of  Kingsley’s  Tune  “Frederick”  .  .  .  227 

William  A.  Muhlenberg . 229 

From  an  engraving. 

Autograph  Verse  of  “O  Help  us,  Lord;  Each  Hour 

of  Need” . 237 

Henry  H.  Milman . 239 

Autograph  Verse  of  “Shepherd  of  Tender  Youth”  247 

Henry  M.  Dexter . 249 

Autograph  Verses  of  “Thine  For  Ever!  God  of 

Love” . 255 

Mary  F.  Maude . 259 

From  a  photograph  by  C.  Ilawkins. 

Autograph  of  “Sunset  and  Evening  Star”  ....  265 

Lord  Tennyson . .  269 

From  an  engraving  by  G.  J.  Stodart ,  after  a  photograph  by 
J.  May  all. 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


I 

O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 

The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  O  little  town  of  Bethlehem, 

How  still  we  see  thee  lie ; 

Above  thy  deep  and  dreamless  sleep 
The  silent  stars  go  by :  - 
Yet  in  thy  dark  streets  shineth 
The  everlasting  Light ; 

The  hopes  and  fears  of  all  the  years 
Are  met  in  thee  to-night. 

2  For  Christ  is  born  of  Mary; 

And  gathered  all  above, 

While  mortals  sleep,  the  angels  keep 
Their  watch  of  wondering  love. 

O  morning  stars,  together 
Proclaim  the  holy  birth  ; 

And  praises  sing  to  God  the  King, 

And  peace  to  men  on  earth. 

3  How  silently,  how  silently, 

The  wondrous  gift  is  given ! 

So  God  imparts  to  human  hearts 
The  blessings  of  His  heaven. 

No  ear  may  hear  His  coming, 

But  in  this  world  of  sin, 

Where  meek  souls  will  receive  Him  still, 
The  dear  Christ  enters  in. 


i 


2 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  O  holy  Child  of  Bethlehem, 

Descend  to  us,  we  pray; 

Cast  out  our  sin,  and  enter  in, 

Be  born  in  us  to-day. 

We  hear  the  Christmas  angels 
The  great  glad  tidings  tell; 

O  come  to  us,  abide  with  us, 

Our  Lord  Emmanuel. 

Rev.  Phillips  Brooks,  1868 

NOTE. — Four  verses  of  the  five  as  originally  written  (see  under  “  Some 
Points  for  Discussion”).  This  text  agrees  with  the  author's 
manuscript.  That  issued  by  Bishop  Brooks’s  publishers  in 
“illuminated”  style  was  inaccurate. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Tt  was  the  sight  of  Bethlehem  itself,  one  feels  very 
sure,  that  gave  Phillips  Brooks  the  impulse  to  write  this 
hymn.  He  was  then  rector  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy 
Trinity,  in  Philadelphia,  and  had  spent  a  year’s  vacation 
traveling  in  Europe  and  the  East.  “  After  an  early 
dinner,  we  took  our  horses  and  rode  to  Bethlehem,” 
so  he  wrote  home  in  Christmas  week  of  18657  “It 
was  only  about  two  hours  when  we  came  to  the 
town,  situated  on  an  eastern  ridge  of  a  range  of  hills, 
surrounded  by  its  terraced  gardens.  It  is  a  good-look¬ 
ing  town,  better  built  than  any  other  we  have  seen  in 
Palestine.  .  .  .  Before  dark,  we  rode  out  of  town  to 
the  field  where  they  say  the  shepherds  saw  the  star. 
It  is  a  fenced  piece  of  ground  with  a  cave  in  it  (all 
the  Holy  Places  are  caves  here),  in  which,  strangely 
enough,  they  put  the  shepherds.  The  story  is  absurd, 
but  somewhere  in  those  fields  we  rode  through  the 
shepherds  must  have  been.  ...  As  we  passed,  the 
shepherds  were  still  ‘  keeping  watch  over  their  flocks/ 


O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 


n 

0 


“  or  leading  them  home  to  fold.”  Mr.  Brooks  returned 
in  September,  1866,  and  it  must  have  been  while  medi¬ 
tating  at  home  over  what  he  had  seen  that  the  carol 
took  shape  in  his  mind.  The  late  Dr.  Arthur  Brooks 
assured  the  writer  that  it  was  not  written  until  1868. 


$  /4xhzw> 

t^Ly  cA  (T&uLj 

?*  & 

JZy 

/Csu  (F  ybctyy?  o^CO 

$AJb  /?l 6^0  s^c+^y/ 


AN  AUTOGRAPH  VERSE  OF  THE  HYMN 


In  the  programme  of  the  Christmas  service  of  the 
Sunday-school  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity 
in  that  year  the  carol  was  first  printed,  and  it  was 
sung  to  the  music  written  for  it  by  Mr.  Lewis  LI. 
Redner. 


4 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Its  history  as  a  hymn  begins  then,  and  a  considerable 
share  of  the  credit  for  its  popularity  must  be  given  to 
Mr.  Redner,  at  that  time  organist  of  the  church,  super¬ 
intendent  of  the  school,  and  teacher  of  one  of  its  classes. 
The  place  of  the  carol  in  the  books  is  now  established, 
and  new  tunes  have  been  and  will  be  written  for  it.  But 
it  is  safe  to  say  that  Mr.  Redner’s  music  was  what 
carried  the  carol  into  notice  and  popularity.  If  the 
tune  to  which  it  was  sung  at  that  service  had  been  un¬ 
successful,  it  is  unlikely  that  the  carol  would  have  been 
reprinted  or  heard  again,  at  least  during  Bishop  Brooks’s 
life. 

With  this  view  of  the  case  it  seemed  to  the  present 
writer  well  worth  while  that  an  account,  as  circum¬ 
stantial  as  possible,  of  the  genesis  of  hymn  and  tune 
should  be  secured  from  the  one  man  living  who  knows 
it.  And  standing  over  Mr.  Redner  in  his  Walnut  Street 
office  in  Philadelphia  one  winter  afternoon,  waving  aside 
the  modest  protests  and  gently  prodding  the  reluctance 
of  that  genial  composer,  he  was  happy  in  obtaining  the 
following  written  statement  of  the  circumstances As 
Christmas  of  1868  approached,  Mr.  Brooks  told  me  that 
he  had  written  a  simple  little  carol  for  the  Christmas 
Sunday-school  service,  and  he  asked  me  to  write  the 
tune  to  it.  The  simple  music  was  written  in  great  haste 
and  under  great  pressure.  We  were  to  practice  it  on 
the  following  Sunday.  Mr.  Brooks  came  to  me  on 
Friday,  and  said,  ‘  Redner,  have  you  ground  out  that 
music  yet  to  “  O  Little  Town  of  Bethlehem  ”  ?’  I  re¬ 
plied,  ‘  No,’  but  that  he  should  have  it  by  Sunday.  On 
the  Saturday  night  previous  my  brain  was  all  confused 
about  the  tune.  I  thought  more  about  my  Sunday- 


O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 


5 


“  school  lesson  than  I  did  about  the  music.  But  I  was 
roused  from  sleep  late  in  the  night  hearing  an  angel- 
strain  whispering  in  my  ear,  and  seizing  a  piece  of  music 
paper  I  jotted  down  the  treble  of  the  tune  as  we  now 
have  it,  and  on  Sunday  morning  before  going  to  church 
I  filled  in  the  harmony.  Neither  Mr.  Brooks  nor  I  ever 


LEWIS  H.  REDNER  (1868) 


thought  the  carol  or  the  music  to  it  would  live  beyond 
that  Christmas  of  1868. 

“  My  recollection  is  that  Richard  McCauley,  who  then 
had  a  bookstore  on  Chestnut  Street  west  of  Thirteenth 
Street,  printed  it  on  leaflets  for  sale.  Rev.  Dr.  Hunting- 
ton,  rector  of  All  Saints’  Church,  Worcester,  Mass., 


6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  IIYMNS 


“  asked  permission  to  print  it  in  his  Sunday-school  hymn 
and  tune  book,  called  The  Church  Porch ,  and  it  was  he 
who  christened  the  music  ‘  Saint  Louis.’  ” 

The  date  of  Dr.  Huntington’s  book,  1874,  does  not 
imply  a  very  prompt  recognition  of  the  merits  of  the 
carol  even  as  available  for  use  in  the  Sunday-school. 
Nor  does  its  appearance  in  that  book  ipiply  that  the 
carol  passed  at  that  date  into  general  use  in  Sunday- 
schools.  But  gradually  it  became  familiar  in  those  con¬ 
nected  with  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church.  By  the 
year  1890  it  had  begun  to  make  its  appearance  in 
hymnals  intended  for  use  in  church  worship.  In  1892 
(some  twenty-four  years  after  its  first  appearance)  Bishop 
Brooks’s  carol  was  given  a  place  as  a  church  hymn  in 
the  official  hymnal  of  his  own  denomination.  This 
occasioned  the  composition  of  new  tunes  to  its  words 
for  rival  musical  editions  of  that  book,  and  also  drew 
attention  afresh  to  the  earlier  tune  of  Mr.  Redner.  It 
seems,  too,  to  have  settled  the  status  of  the  hymn,  recent 
editors  being  as  reluctant  to  omit  the  hymn  as  their 
predecessors  had  been  to  recognize  it. 

There  is,  however,  nothing  unusual  or  surprising  in 
this  delay  in  admitting  the  carol  into  the  church  hymnals. 
Almost  all  hymns  undergo  such  a  period  of  probation 
before  they  attain  recognition ;  and  it  is  for  the  best 
interests  of  hymnody  that  they  should.  In  this  particu¬ 
lar  case  there  was  an  especial  reason  for  delay.  There 
had  to  be  a  certain  change  in  the  standards  by  which 
hymns  are  judged  before  a  carol  such  as  this  could  be 
esteemed  suitable  for  church  use.  In  1868,  it  is  likely, 
not  even  its  author  would  have  seriously  considered  it  in 
such  a  connection. 


O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 


7 


The  author  of  the  Hymn 

Phillips  Brooks  was  born  in  Boston,  December  13th, 
1835.  He  came  of  a  long  line  of  Puritan  ancestors, 
many  of  whom  had  been  Congregational  clergymen. 
His  parents  became  connected  with  the  Episcopal 
Church,  and  he  was  reared  in  the  strict  ways  of  the 
Evangelical  wing  of  that  Church.  He  had  the  typical 
Boston  education,  the  Latin  School  and  then  Harvard, 
from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1855.  He  was  then 
for  a  few  months  a  teacher  in  the  Latin  School,  but 
there  he  had  the  humiliating  experience  of  complete 
failure.  He  soon  decided  to  enter  the  ministry,  and 
studied  at  Alexandria  Seminary,  in  Virginia.  In  1859 
he  became  rector  of  a  small  church  in  Philadelphia. 
Here  his  sermons  attracted  much  attention,  and  in  1861 
he  was  called  to  be  rector  of  the  Church  of  the  Holy 
Trinity,  in  the  same  city. 

In  that  position  he  remained  until  1869,  when  his  own 
leanings  toward  his  native  town  and  the  urgency  of  re- 


8 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


peated  calls  from  there  led  him  to  accept  the  rectorship 
of  Trinity  Church,  Boston.  The  congregation  built  for 
him  the  great  church  in  the  Back  Bay,  and  there  he 
exercised  that  wonderful  ministry  with  which  we  all  are 
familiar.  In  1891  he  was  elected  bishop  of  his  Church 
in  Massachusetts,  and  after  some  controversy,  occasioned 
by  his  broad  views  in  church  matters,  his  election  was 
confirmed  and  he  was  consecrated.  But  this  position  he 
was  not  to  fill  for  long.  The  strain  of  the  great  work  he 
had  been  doing  had  undermined  even  his  giant  strength, 
and  after  a  short  sickness  he  passed  away  on  January 
23rd,  1893. 

Bishop  Brooks  was  the  most  famous  preacher  and  the 
most  widely-loved  clergyman  of  his  time.  The  shock 
of  his  death  was  felt  in  every  branch  of  the  Church 
throughout  the  land,  for  while  many  disagreed  with  his 
opinions,  none  who  knew  him  in  his  work  could  with¬ 
hold  their  admiration.  The  word  that  seems  best  to 
describe  him  is  “  great.”  He  was  great  in  his  physical 
proportions,  great  in  the  endowments  of  genius,  great  in 
the  power  to  work,  extraordinarily  great  in  his  personal 
influence  over  men,  greatest  of  all  in  the  moral  elevation 
of  his  character  and  his  ever-deepening  spirit  of  conse¬ 
cration,  to  Christ’s  service. 

The  connection  of  one  so  great  with  hymnody  as  the 
writer  of  a  few  simple  carols  intended  for  children  seems 
at  first  a  little  incongruous.  But  after  reading  his  biog¬ 
raphy,  and  understanding  the  man’s  nature,  one  feels 
rather  that  nothing  he  ever  did  was  more  characteristic 
of  him.  It  now  appears  that  verse-writing  was  even  a 
regular  habit  with  him,  probably  as  a  relief  to  feelings 
his  intensely  reserved  nature  could  express  in  no  other 


O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 


9 


way.  And  he  not  only  loved  children  dearly,  but  liked 
to  be  their  comrade  and  to  get  down  on  the  nursery 
floor  and  romp  with  them.  His  own  heart  was  like  a 
child’s,  and  he  wrote  Christmas  and  Easter  carols  be¬ 
cause  he  entered  into  those  festivals  with  a  child’s 
enthusiasm  and  joy. 


PHILLIPS  BROOKS  (ABOUT  1868) 


But  there  is  another  point  of  connection  between 
Bishop  Brooks  and  hymnody  which  must  not  be  passed 
over.  Its  disclosure  was  to  many  one  of  the  surprises 
of  that  wonderful  biography  of  his  friend  by  Dr. 
Allen.  And  that  connection  is  in  the  fact  that  his  own 
mind  and  heart  were  stored  with  hymns,  to  such  an 
extent  and  in  such  a  way  that  they  were  one  of  the  real 
influences  of  his  life. 

In  one  of  the  letters  “  the  father  regrets  that  Phillips 


10  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

“  could  not  have  been  with  the  family  on  the  last  Sunday 
evening  when  the  boys  recited  hymns.  This  was  a 
beautiful  custom,  which  called  from  each  one  of  the 
children  the  learning  of  a  new  hymn  every  Sunday,  and 
its  recital  before  the  assembled  family.  In  a  little  book, 
carefully  kept  by  the  father,  there  was  a  record  of  the 
hymns  each  child  had  learned,  beginning  with  William, 
who  had  the  advantage  of  age,  and  had  learned  the 
greatest  number,  followed  by  Phillips,  who  qame  next, 
and  the  record  tapering  down  until  John  is  reached,  with 
a  comparatively  small  number  at  his  disposal.  Most  of 
them  were  from  the  old  edition  of  the  Prayer  Book, 
then  bound  up  with  a  metrical  selection  of  Psalms  and 
a  collection  of  two  hundred  and  twelve  hymns.”  “  But 
there  were  others.  When  Phillips  went  to  college  there 
were  some  two  hundred  that  he  could  repeat.  They 
constituted  part  of  his  religious  furniture,  or  the  soil 
whence  grew  much  that  cannot  now  be  traced.  He  never 
forgot  them.”  Again  his  biographer  remarks :  “  These 
hymns  Phillips  carried  in  his  mind  as  so  much  mental 
and  spiritual  furniture,  or  as  germs  of  thought;  they 
often  reappeared  in  his  sermons,  as  he  became  aware  of 
some  deeper  meaning  in  the  old  familiar  lines.”  Once 
more  the  biographer  recurs  to  the  subject;  this  time 
to  speak  of  “  the  language  of  sacred  hymns  learned  in 
childhood  and  forever  ringing  in  his  ears,”  as  one  of 
the  channels  through  which  “  he  had  felt  the  touch  of 
Christ.” 

Some  points  for  Discussion 

(i)  Bishop  Brooks’s  biographer  says  of  this  carol: 
“  It  is  an  exquisitely  simple  thing,  and  yet  one  feels 


O  LITTLE  TOWN  OF  BETHLEHEM 


“  behind  the  words  the  existence  of  a  great  soul,  medi¬ 
tating  on  the  mystery  of  the  divine  revelation.”  Is  this 
a  true  characterization  ?  He  suggests  further  that  “  It 
has  also  a  theological  significance — the  adjustment  be¬ 
tween  the  natural  order  and  the  divine  revelation.” 

* 

Ada, 

IZuJ  ALj&I  tksNe,  ELL 

AZ,  AWc  AyAr  /zH  fAy  /u. 

^2^))  <TL^U«J£>*  A-Zi^jU 

THE  OMITTED  VERSE 


(2)  In  the  original  manuscript  of  the  carol  there  was 
a  fourth  verse  not  used  in  the  hymn  books.  Its  form 
as  first  written  appears  in  the  facsimile.  Mr.  Redner 


12  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

writes :  “  The  fourth  line  led  to  some  amusing  criticism 
lest  it  should  smack  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Immaculate 
Conception.  Brooks  then  changed  that  line  to  ‘  Son  of 
the  Mother  mild/  [and  so  it  appears  in  the  Christmas 
programme  of  1868],  but  he  afterwards  decided  to  omit 
the  fourth  verse  altogether  from  the  carol.”  Is  it  worth 
while  to  restore  the  omitted  verse  ? 

(3)  The  form  of  the  carol  is  somewhat  unusual  for  a 
hymn.  It  is  not  (until  the  last  verse)  an  offering  of 
direct  praise  or  prayer  to  God,  but  is  rather  a  medita¬ 
tion  in  which  the  singer  addresses  the  little  town  itself. 
Some  hymnologists  on  that  account  question  the  pro¬ 
priety  of  giving  it  a  place  among  the  hymns  of  the 
Church.  Is  the  carol  really  wanting  in  the  form  proper 
for  a  hymn  ?  and  if  so,  how  far  is  its  defect  overcome 
by  deeper  qualities  that  mark  it  as  a  hymn  rather  than 
a  ballad  ? 

(4)  The  irregularities  of  the  metre  offer  an  interesting 
study.  The  general  scheme  is  that  called  “common 
metre,”  a  line  of  four  accents  alternating  with  one  of 
three.  This  was  the  usual  metre  of  the  old  English 
ballads ;  and  it  looks  as  though  Mr.  Brooks  had  been 
studying  the  balladists,  who  had  a  way  of  dropping  out 
an  accented  syllable  here  and  there,  and  of  breaking  an 
occasional  line  into  two  by  putting  an  additional  rhyme 
into  the  middle  of  it.  Do  not  these  irregularities  add  to 
the  charm  ? 

(5)  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  lines : — 


“  The  hopes  and  fears  of  all  the  years 
Are  met  in  thee  to-night  ”  ? 


II 


STAND  UP,  STAND  UP  FOR  JESUS 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

Ye  soldiers  of  the  cross; 

Lift  high  His  royal  banner, 

It  must  not  suffer  loss  : 

From  victory  unto  victory 
His  army  He  shall  lead, 

Till  every  foe  is  vanquished, 

And  Christ  is  Lord  indeed. 

2  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

The  trumpet  call  obey ; 

Forth  to  the  mighty  conflict 
In  this  His  glorious  day  : 

Ye  that  are  men  now  serve  Him 
Against  unnumbered  foes ; 

Let  courage  rise  with  danger, 

And  strength  to  strength  oppose. 

3  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

Stand  in  His  strength  alone; 

The  arm  of  flesh  will  fail  you, 

Ye  dare  not  trust  your  own: 

Put  on  the  gospel  armor, 

Each  piece  put  on  with  prayer; 
Where  duty  calls,  or  danger, 

Be  never  wanting  there. 


13 


14 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

The  strife  will  not  be  long ; 

This  day  the  noise  of  battle, 

The  next  the?  victor’s  song: 

To  him  that  overcometh 
A  crown  of  life  shall  be ; 

He  with  the  King  of  Glory 
Shall  reign  eternally. 

Rev.  George  Duffield,  1858 

Note. — Four  verses  of  the  original  six.  The  text  is  taken  from  a  leaflet 
printed  by  the  author  in  1883. 


The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

Very  few  hymns  have  had  so  pathetic  an  origin  as 
this.  Its  author,  the  Rev.  George  Duffield,  was  a 
pastor  in  Philadelphia  during  the  great  revival  of  the 
winter  of  1857  and  the  spring  of  1858,  which  centred 
about  the  Noonday  Prayer  Meetings  in  Jayne’s  Hall, 
under  the  charge  of  the  Young  Men’s  Christian  Asso¬ 
ciation. 

The  real  leader  of  the  movement  was  a  young  Episco¬ 
palian  clergyman,  Dudley  A.  Tyng.  Though  not  yet 
thirty  years  old,  he  was  well  known  for  his  stand  for 
interdenominational  fellowship  and  for  the  fervor  of  his 
evangelical  zeal.  In  Philadelphia,  at  the  time,  he  was 
especially  before  the  public  eye,  having  but  lately,  after 
a  contest  with  his  vestry,  precipitated  by  a  sermon  in 
opposition  to  slave-holding,  been  ^compelled  to  .retire 
from  the  rectorship  of  the  Church  of  the  Epiphany.  He 
had  gone  forth  with  those  sympathizing  with  him,  and 
preached  in  a  public  hall,  establishing  there  the  Church 
of  the  Covenant.  The  band  of  clergymen  of  various 
denominations  gathered  about  him  was  united  not  only 


REV.  DUDLEY  A.  TYNG 


i6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


by  zeal  in  carrying  on  “  The  Work  of  God  in  Phila¬ 
delphia,”  but  also  in  admiration  and  affection  for  Mr. 
Tyng ;  and  not  the  less  so  for  their  general  feeling  that 
“  he  had  been  persecuted.”  Among  these  helpers  was 
Mr.  Duffield,  a  deeply  attached  friend,  who  thought  Mr. 
Tyng  “  one  of  the  noblest,  bravest,  manliest  men  I  ever 
met.” 

Athwart  this  fellowship  and  common  work  came  the 
tragic  interruption  of  Mr.  Tyng’s  death.  On  Tuesday, 
April  13th,  1858,  he  went  from  the  study  of  his  country 
home  to  the  barn  floor  where  a  mule  was  at  work  tread¬ 
ing  a  machine  for  shelling  corn.  As  he  patted  the 
animal  on  the  neck  the  sleeve  of  his  study-gown  be¬ 
came  caught  in  the  cogs  of  the  wheel,  wrenching  and 
lacerating  his  arm,  from  the  neck  down,  in  a  dreadful 
manner.  It  seems  that  mortification  set  in.  In  any 
event  amputation,  performed  on  the  Saturday  following, 
did  no  more  than  postpone  the  end.  Mr.  Tyng  died  on 
Monday,  April  19th,  1858. 

Early  that  morning,  it  being  perceived  that  he  was 
sinking,  he  was  asked  if  he  had  any  messages  to  send, 
among  others,  to  the  band  of  clergymen  so  devoted  to 
him  and  the  work.  When  able  to  rouse  himself  suffi¬ 
ciently,  he  responded  with  a  short  message,  beginning 
with  the  words :  “  Tell  them,  ‘  Let  us  all  stand  up  for 
Jesus.’  ”  It  is  evident  that  these  words  especially  touched 
the  already  aroused  feelings  of  his  fellow-workers. 
Bishop  Macllvaine  and  the  Rev..  John  Chambers  quoted 
theitf  at  the  funeral  as  their  friend-’-s  dying  message.  At 
one  of  the  Jayne’s  Hall  meetings  a  poem  was  read 
from  the  platform  by  the  Rev.  Thomas  H.  Stockton, 
beginning : 


STAND  UP ,  STAND  UP  FOR  JESUS 


1 7 

“  Stand  up  for  Jesus  !  Strengthen’d  by  His  hand, 

Even  I,  though  young,  have  ventured  thus  to  stand  ; 

But,  soon  cut  down,  as  maim’d  and  faint  I  lie, 

Hear,  O  my  friends,  the  charge  with  which  I  die — 

Stand  up  for  Jesus  !” 


And  the  Rev.  Kingston  Goddard,  preaching  to  a  great 
throng  on  the  day  after  Mr.  Tyng’s  death,  remarked : 
“  I  conceive  that  the  whole  of  my  brother’s  teaching  is 
contained  in  that  grand  and  noble  expression  of  heroism 
and  devotion  that  fell  from  his  lips  in  his  dying  hour — 
‘  Stand  up  for  Jesus  !’  ” 

Mr.  Duffield  had  been  present  at  these  services,  but, 
with  his  own  feelings  deeply  stirred  by  his  friend’s  tragic 
death,  perhaps  hardly  needed  such  incentives  to  quicken 
the  appeal  of  that  dying  message  to  his  heart.  On  the 
Sunday  following  he  preached  to  his  own  people  from 
Ephesians  vi.  14,  and  read  as  the  concluding"  exhorta¬ 
tion  of  the  sermon  the  verses  of  his  now  famous  hymn, 
into  which  he  had  wrought  the  message  of  his  friend. 

The  superintendent  of  his  Sunday-school,  Mr.  Benedict 
D.  Stewart,  had  them  printed  on  a  fly  leaf ;  they  were 
copied  by  religious  papers  ^they  appeared  in  The  Sabbath 
Hymn  Book  (Congregational)  that  same  year,  and  in  the 
Supplement  to  The  Church  Psalmist  (Presbyterian)  in  the 
next  year.  The  hymn  became  a  favorite  of  the  soldiers 
during  the  Civil  War,  and  is  now  sung  in  churches  and 
Sunday-schools  all  over  the  land  and  in  many  foreign 
countries. 

Long  afterwards  (in  1883)  Dr.  Duffield  printed  a  leaflet 
containing  his  preferred  text  of  the  hymn,  and  also 
his  recollections  of  its  origin.  This  has  been  often 
quoted  from,  and  forms  the  familiar  history  of  the  hymn. 


1 8  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Dr.  Duffield’s  memory  had  retained  its  hold  upon  so 
much  of  the  events  as  directly  concerned  himself,  but  it 
is  plain  that  other  dates  and  circumstances  had  become 
somewhat  dimmed  with  the  lapse  of  years.  And  the 
present  writer  has  not  hesitated  to  supplement  and  cor¬ 
rect  these  recollections  in  the  light  of  facts  disclosed  in 
the  Memorial  Volume  published  in  the  year  of  Mr. 
Tyng’s  death,  and  especially  in  the  touching  Memorial 
Sermon  of  Mr.  Tyng’s  father  (Stephen  H.  Tyng,  D.D.), 
who  was  present  during  the  closing  days  of  his  son’s 
life. 

“  A  cob  of  corn  from  that  ‘  threshing-floor,’  ”  we  are 
told  by  Dr.  Duffield’s  son,  in  1885,  “has  ever  since 
hung  on  the  study-wall  of  the  author  of  the  hymn.” 
The  hymn  itself  seems  to  echo  the  voice  of  his  friend : 
“  Tell  them,  ‘  Let  us  all  stand  up  for  Jesus,’  ”  with  his 
other  words  to  those  about  him  soon  following,  “  Sing ! 
Sing  !  Can  you  not  sing  ?” 


The  author  of  the  Hymn 

In  the  ministry  of  the  American  Presbyterian  Church 
there  have  been  three  distinguished  men  named  George 
Duffield.  The  first  (1732-1790)  was  a  patriot  and 
chaplain  in  the  Revolutionary  army.  His  grandson,  the 
second  George  Duffield  (1796—1868),  was  a  successful 
pastor  at  Carlisle,  Philadelphia,  and  other  places,  and 
an  able  theologian,  whose  work  on  Regeneration  met 
with  the  disapproval  of  his  Presbytery.  It  was  his  son, 
the  third  George  Duffield,  who  was  the  author  of  this 
hymn.  “  The  author  is  not  his  father,  Rev.  George 
Duffield,  D.D.,  the  Patriarch  of  Michigan,”  he  found 


STAND  UP ,  STAND  UP  FOR  JESUS 


19 


occasion  to  say  after  his  hymn  had  become  famous  while 
his  personality  seemed  obscured.  “  Neither  is  he  his  son, 
Rev.  Samuel  W.  Duffield,  .  .  .  now  pastor  of  the  West¬ 
minster  Church,  Bloomfield,  N.  J.  [He]  has  not  yet  lost 
his  identity,  and  claims  to  be  his  own  individual  self.” 


j/rt  yC 

[At  about  the  time  of  writing  the  hymn] 


He  was  born  at  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania,  in  1818,  was 
graduated  from  Yale  College  in  1837,  and  from  Union 
Theological  Seminary  in  1840.  In  the  same  year  he 
married,  was  ordained,  and  installed  pastor  of  the  Fifth 
Presbyterian  Church  in  Brooklyn,  where  he  remained 


20  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

seven  years.  It  was  as  pastor  and  preacher,  rather  than 
as  scholar  or  man  of  letters,  that  Dr.  Duffield  spent  his 
life.  After  leaving  Brooklyn  he  was  pastor  of  the  hiist 
Church  of  Bloomfield,  New  Jersey,  for  four  years.  In 
1851  he  broke  off  a  happy  pastorate  there  to  accept  the 
call  of  the  Central  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  Northern 
Liberties,  Philadelphia,  with  the  expectation  of  finding  in 
the  great  city  an  enlarged  opportunity  for  usefulness.  It 
seems  quite  certain  that  if  he  had  not  gone  to  Phila¬ 
delphia  we  should  never  have  had  the  hymn  so  closely 
connected  with  his  experiences  there.  But  to  him,  at 
the  time,  it  must  have  seemed  as  though  his  going  had 
been  the  mistake  of  his  professional  life.  He  found  a 
mortgaged  church  building  unfortunately  located  in  a 
neighborhood  from  which  the  population  was  moving 
westward,  a  congregation  reduced  in  numbers,  dis¬ 
heartened,  and  unable  to  meet  its  financial  obligations. 
Dr.  Duffield’s  Philadelphia  pastorate  was  not  wanting  in 
spiritual  results,  but  with  the  conditions  threatening  the 
continued  life  of  his  church  he  was  not  able  to  cope. 
Year  by  year  the  congregation  grew  less  in  numbers 
and  resources.  Dr.  Duffield,  however,  held  on  until 
1861,  when  he  resigned  his  pastorate.  His  subsequent 
pastorates  were  of  a  less  conspicuous  character, — at 
Adrian,  Michigan,  for  four  years,  at  Galesburg,  Illinois, 
for  an  equal  period,  and  then  at  Saginaw  City,  Michigan. 

His  active  service  covered  more  than  forty  years. 
Dr.  Duffield’s  last  years  were  lived  in  Bloomfield,  with 
his  son.  The  son,  himself  a  poet,  always  recalled  with 
pride  that  his  hand  had  made  the  first  “fair  copy” 
of  his  father’s  hymn  for  the  press,  and  those  who  saw 
father  and  son  together  at  Bloomfield,  still  speak  of  the 


STAND  UP ,  STAND  UP  FOR  JESUS 


21 


reverence  and  love  with  which  that  same  hand  sup¬ 
ported  the  father’s  failing  steps.  But  the  son  was  first 
called,  and  it  was  more  than  a  year  before  the  father  fol¬ 
lowed  him.  Dr.  Duffield  died  at  Bloomfield  on  July  6th, 
1888,  and  his  remains  were  buried  at  Detroit. 

Dr.  Duffield  himself  was  a  good  soldier  of  Jesus 
Christ.  He  served  so  well  and  so  long  that  at  first 
thought  it  seems  strange,  even  unjust,  that  he  should 
now  be  remembered  principally  as  the  author  of  a  hymn. 
But,  after  all,  such  a  hymn  is  the  flower  of  a  man’s  life, 
and  holds  the  best  he  was  and  had.  It  is  quite  possible, 
too,  that  Dr.  Duffield’s  hymn  is  the  crown  of  his  labors 
for  Christ.  He  helped  hundreds  while  he  lived,  but 
how  many  thousands  have  been  encouraged  and  in¬ 
spired  by  his  brave  song  ! 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Why  are  military  hymns  so  popular?  and  is  it 
right  that  they  should  be?  Was  a  recent  critic  justified 
in  the  remark  that  it  seemed  to  him  foolish  for  a  com¬ 
pany  of  primary  school  boys  and  girls  to  march  singing 
of  soldiering  and  battles  ? 

(2)  The  original  second  and  fifth  verses  were  omitted 
from  The  Hymnal.  Would  either  or  both  of  them  be 
any  addition  to  the  hymn  as  here  printed  ? 

2.  “  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

The  solemn  watchword  hear  ; 

If  while  ye  sleep  He  suffers, 

Away  with  shame  and  fear ; 

Where’er  ye  meet  with  evil, 

Within  you  or  without, 

Charge  for  the  God  of  Battles, 

And  put  the  foe  to  rout. 


22 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


5.  “  Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus, 

Each  soldier  to  his  post ; 

Close  up  the  broken  column, 

And  shout  through  all  the  host 
Make  good  the  loss  so  heavy, 

In  those  that  still  remain, 

And  prove  to  all  around  you 
That  death  itself  is  gain.” 

(3)  The  four  verses  in  The  Hymnal  (and  here)  are 
exactly  as  the  author  wrote  them.  In  many  books  the 
sixth  line  of  verse  one  (“  His  army  He  shall  lead  ”)  reads, 
“  His  army  shall  be  led.”  This  was  originally  a  mis¬ 
print,  and  was  a  great  annoyance  to  the  author.  The 
change  spoils  both  rhyme  and  sense,  and  needs  no  dis¬ 
cussion. 

In  The  Sabbath  Hymn  Book  of  1858,  and  in  most 
books  since,  the  sixth  line  of  verse  three  (“  Each  piece 
put  on  with  prayer  ”)  is  altered  to,  “  And,  watching  unto 
prayer.”  Was  the  change  justifiable,  and  is  it  an 
improvement  ?  (Note  Dr.  Duffield’s  words  :  “  It  is  the 
author’s  earnest  wish  that”  the  hymn  “shall  continue 
unaltered  until  the  Soldiers  of  the  Cross  shall  replace 
it  by  something  better.”) 

(4)  The  second  verse  of  the  hymn  contains  a  para¬ 
phrase  of  the  text  of  a  sermon  preached  by  Mr.  Tyng 
at  one  of  the  Jayne’s  Hall  meetings.  According  to  Dr. 
Duffield’s  leaflet  it  was  preached  the  Sunday  before 
Mr.  Tyng’s  death  (but  he  was  then  in  a  dying  condition) ; 
according  to  the  Memorial  it  was  preached  on  March 
30th.  A  great  throng  of  young  men  was  present,  and 
Dr.  Duffield  says,  “  at  least  one  thousand,  it  was  believed, 
were  ‘  the  slain  of  the  Lord.’  ”  What  was  the  text  of 
the  sermon  ? 


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AN  AUTOGRAPH  VERSE 


24 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


(5)  Which  of  the  familiar  tunes  to  these  words  best 
expresses  the  spirit  and  sentiments  of  the  hymn — Webb, 
Lancashire,  or  Greenland  (see  T]ie  Hymnal,  Nos.  304, 
347,  348)  ?  This  is  an  instance  of  a  hymn  making  its 
way  without  the  aid  of  a  tune — the  tune  to  which  it  was 
set  in  The  Sabbath  Hymn  and  Time  Book  having  been 
foi  'gotten  long  ago,  and  none  of  those  mentioned  hav¬ 
ing  been  written  for  this  hymn. 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  Sun  of  my  soul,  Thou  Saviour  dear, 

It  is  not  night  if  Thou  be  near; 

O  may  no  earth-born  cloud  arise 
To  hide  Thee  from  Thy  servant’s  eyes. 

2  When  the  soft  dews  of  kindly  sleep 
My  wearied  eyelids  gently  steep, 

Be  my  last  thought,  how  sweet  to  rest 
For  ever  on  my  Saviour’s  breast. 

3  Abide  with  me  from  morn  till  eve, 

For  without  Thee  I  cannot  live  ; 

Abide  with  me  when  night  is  nigh, 

For  without  Thee  I  dare  not  die. 

4  If  some  poor  wandering  child  of  Thine 
Have  spurned  to-day  the  voice  Divine, 
Now,  Lord,  the  gracious  work  begin; 

Let  him  no  more  lie  down  in  sin. 

5  Watch  by  the  sick  ;  enrich  the  poor 
With  blessings  from  Thy  boundless  store; 
Be  every  mourner’s  sleep  to-night, 

Like  infants’  slumbers,  pure  and  light. 


25 


26 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


6  Come  near  and  bless  us  when  we  wake, 

Ere  through  the  world  our  way  we  take, 

Till  in  the  ocean  of  Thy  love 
We  lose  ourselves  in  heaven  above. 

Rev.  John  Keble,  1820 

Note. — Six  verses  out  of  the  fourteen  of  the  original  poem.  The  text  is 
that  of  the  second  edition  of  The  Christian  Year ,  with  (per¬ 
haps)  a  variation  in  the  form  of  one  word  (see  under  “  Some 
Points  for  Discussion  ”). 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

In  June,  1827,  a  book  of  verse  in  two  thin  i6mo  vol¬ 
umes  was  published  at  Oxford,  England.  It  had  the 
following  title  :  “  The  Christian  Year:  Thoughts  in  Verse 
for  the  Sundays  and  Holydays  throughout  the  Year.” 
Beneath  the  title  was  the  motto,  “  In  quietness  and  in 
confidence  shall  be  your  strength.”  The  author  was  a 
young  clergyman,  John  Keble,  but  his  name  did  not 
appear  in  the  book.  The  secret  of  authorship  was 
shared  by  a  number  of  friends  to  whom  he  had  sub¬ 
mitted  the  manuscript,  and  gradually  leaked  out.  For 
years  he  had  been  writing  and  revising  his  poems,  and 
he  wished  to  hold  them  back  for  still  further  polishing ; 
perhaps  not  letting  the  book  appear  till  after  his  death. 
But  his  aged  father’s  urgent  wish  to  see  it  in  print  impelled 
him  to  publish  it  without  further  delay. 

The  success  of  the  book  was  immediate  and  extra¬ 
ordinary.  Edition  after  edition  was  called  for.  In 
twenty-six  years  after  publication  forty-three  editions,  one 
hundred  and  eight  thousand  copies  in  all,  were  printed. 
Indeed,  the  sale  of  the  book  has  gone  on  continuously 
up  to  the  present  time.  The  man  who  seemed  most 
indifferent  to  its  success,  most  unconscious  of  its  merits. 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL ,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR  27 


was  the  author  himself.  He  never  willingly  talked  about 
it  or  cared  to  hear  it  praised.  That  may  be  explained 
partly  by  his  modesty  and  dissatisfaction  with  his  work, 
but  yet  more  from  the  fact  that  the  book  laid  bare  his 
inmost  thoughts  and  feelings. 

The  Christian  Year  is  not  a  continuous  poem.  It 
consists  of  a  series  of  poems,  one  for  each  of  the  days 


*  ‘  •  ''  v  A 


ur  ^ 


JTd-r’  ^>4.  ^4^ 
£&c~  /Z^suci£¥k.  n  &rt*e. 


JN  M&. 

AUTOGRAPH  VERSES  OF  THE  HYMN 

and  occasions  for  which  services  are  provided  in  the 
Book  of  Common  Prayer.  These  poems  were  not 
intended  for  singing,  but  for  devotional  reading  as  a 
poetical  companion  to  the  Prayer  Book.  And  yet  a  good 


28 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


many  hymns  have  been  taken  from  them  by  compilers 
of  hymn  books. 

The  first  service  in  the  Prayer  Book  is  the  Order  for 
Morning  Prayer.  And  the  first  poem  in  The  Christian 
Year  is  called  “  Morning.”  Certain  of  its  verses  make 
one  of  our  most  familiar  morning  hymns,  “  New  Every 
Morning  is  the  Love”  (The  Hymnal ,  No.  6).  The 
second  service  in  the  Prayer  Book  is  the  Order  for 
Evening  Prayer,  and  in  The  Christian  Year  the  second 
poem  is  “  Evening.”  It  has  fourteen  verses,  with  the 
motto  prefixed,  “  Abide  with  us,  for  it  is  towards  even¬ 
ing,  and  the  day  is  far  spent.”  The  third,  seventh, 
eighth,  twelfth,  thirteenth,  and  fourteenth  verses  make 
up  the  familiar  hymn,  “  Sun  of  My  Soul,”  as  printed  in 
The  Hymnal  (No.  16)  and  here. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  who  it  was  with  the 
wit  to  discover  that  so  lovely  and  complete  a  hymn  lay 
imbedded  among  the  verses  of  a  poem  which,  as  a  whole, 
is  not  a  hymn  at  all.  The  great  thing  was  to  discern 
the  precise  point  at  which  the  hymn  should  begin.  In  a 
copy  of  the  first  edition  of  The  Christian  Year  belonging 
to  the  present  writer  some  one  has  mapped  out  a  pro¬ 
posed  hymn,  beginning  with  the  first  verse  of  the  poem, 
as  follows  : — 


“  ’Tis  gone,  that  bright  and  orbed  blaze, 

Fast  fading  from  our  wistful  gaze ; 

Yon  mantling  cloud  has  hid  from  sight 
The  last  faint  pulse  of  quivering  light.” 

\  f.  ' 

Such  a  hymn  could  not  have  won  its  way.  As  early  as 
1836  the  accomplished  Unitarian,  John  Hamilton  Thom, 
made  up  for  his  Selection  a  hymn  whose  first  verse  was 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR  29 

the  ninth  of  the  poem,  beginning,  “  Thou  Framer  of  the 
light  and  dark,”  followed  by  the  last  three  verses  as  at 
present  sung.  A  year  earlier  than  that  the  Rev.  Henry 
Venn  Elliott  (brother  of  the  author  of  “Just  as  I  Am  ”) 
put  into  his  Psalms  and  Hymns  a  selection  of  four 
verses,  beginning  with  the  “  Sun  of  my  soul  ”  verse. 
His  example  was  followed  by  other  editors,  some  of 
them  using  additional  verses.  And,  unless  an  earlier 
instance  shall  turn  up,  to  him  must  be  given  the  honor 
of  discovering  the  hymn  that  lay  imbedded  in  the  poem. 
It  is  a  curious  fact  that  when  Keble  himself  came  to 
select  the  verses  to  be  used  in  the  Salisbury  Hymn 
Book ,  1857,  he  left  out  the  “Sun  of  my  soul”  verse 
altogether,  and  began  the  hymn  with  “  When  the  soft 
dews  of  kindly  sleep.”  In  this  he  has  had  few  followers. 

In  England,  as  has  been  said,  the  success  of  The 
Christia?i  Year  was  immediate.  But  England  was  more 
remote  from  the  United  States  then  than  now,  and  the 
channels  of  fellowship  between  the  Episcopal  churches  in 
the  two  countries  were  less  open.  Bishop  Doane,  of  Bur¬ 
lington,  New  Jersey,  had  his  attention  called  to  the  book 
in  1828,  accidentally,  by  coming  across  a  quotation  from 
it.  He  edited  and  published  in  1834,  through  Lea  & 
Blanchard,  Philadelphia,  the  first  American  edition  of 
The  Christian  Year.  His  attempt,  by  means  of  notes,  to 
make  it  serve  also  as  a  primer  of  “  the  order,  institu¬ 
tions,  and  services  of  the  Church,”  together  with  his 
curious  method  of  printing  in  italics  all  such  lines 
throughout  the  book  as  especially  pleased  him,  cause  a 
smile  of  amusement  to  flit  across  the  expression  of  one’s 
appreciation  of  the  Bishop’s  venture.  It  was  not,  how¬ 
ever,  until  1865  that  “  Sun  of  My  Soul  ”  was  admitted 


30 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


among  the  hymns  appointed  to  be  sung  in  Protestant 
Episcopal  churches.  The  New  England  Unitarians  (least 
in  sympathy  with  Keble  and  yet  most  alert  in  seeing  good 
in  new  things)  were,  as  so  often,  the  first  to  introduce 
the  hymn  into  this  country.  In  1835  F.  W.  P.  Green¬ 
wood,  pastor  of  King’s  Chapel,  Boston,  included  it  in 
his  Collection  of  Psalms  and  Hymns ,  beginning  the  hymn 
with  the  first  verse  of  the  poem  (“  ’Tis  gone,  that  blight 
and  orbed  blaze  ”),  and  following  that  with  the  Sun  of 
my  soul  ”  verse  and  two  more  of  those  now  so  familiar. 
Several  other  Unitarian  compilers  followed  Mr.  Green¬ 
wood’s  lead.  Henry  Ward  Beecher’s  Plymouth  Collec¬ 
tion  of  1855  seems  to  have  introduced  the  hymn  into 
more  orthodox  circles  ;  and  in  The  Sabbath  Hymn  Book 
of  the  Andover  professors,  1858,  it  appears,  at  length 
relieved  of  the  incubus  of  a  first  veise  that  is  not 
hymnic,  as  our  familiar  “  Sun  of  My  Soul,  Thou  Saviour 

Dear.” 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

John  Keble  was  born  at  Fairford  on  April  25th,  1792. 
He  was  prepared  for  college  by  his  father,  a  country 
clergyman  (for  whom  the  poet  was  named),  and  went 
up  to  Oxford  “as  a  mere  lad,  home-bred  and  home- 
loving.”  Keble’s  home-training  in  a  secluded  parson¬ 
age,  with  the  peaceful  English  landscape  outside,  and, 
within,  the  unquestioned  reign  of  the  old  High  Church 
prejudices,  opinions,  and  piety,  had  a  great  part  in  mak¬ 
ing  him  what  he  was.  It  furnished  the  very  atmosphere 
of  the  poetry  of  his  after  years. 

While  only  eighteen  he  was  graduated  B.  A.,  with 
double  first-class  honors,  then  counted  a  rare  distinction. 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL ,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR  3  I 


In  those  days,  when  scholarship  outranked  athletics,  it 
made  the  shy,  gentle  lad  “  first  man  in  Oxford.”  Cardi¬ 
nal  Newman  recalls  that  when  he  came  there  Keble’s 
was  the  first  name  he  heard,  spoken  of  “  with  reverence 
rather  than  admiration,”  and  confesses  how  abashed  he 


JOHN  KEBLE 


felt  in  Keble’s  presence.  This  “  reverence  rather  than 
admiration  ”  seems  to  have  been  the  common  feeling 
toward  Keble  through  all  his  life. 

Keble  was  elected  a  Fellow  of  Oriel  College,  and 
remained  in  Oxford  as  a  tutor  and  as  examiner.  He 


32 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


was  ordained  to  the  full  ministry  in  1816,  and  took  a 
country  curacy  in  addition  to  college  duties.  His 
mother’s  death,  in  1823,  brought  him  home  to  Fairford, 
and  there,  with  the  exception  of  a  year  as  curate  of 
Hursley,  he  stayed  as  his  father’s  helper  as  long  as  the 
latter  lived.  It  was  while  at  Fairford  that  he  published 
The  Christian  Year .  Other  than  that,  perhaps  the  most 
momentous  thing  he  did  in  these  years  was  preaching  at 
Oxford  in  1833  the  famous  Assize  Sermon  that,  accord¬ 
ing  to  Newman,  gave  the  start  to  the  High  Church  or 
Oxford  Movement,  which  transformed  the  Church  of 
England.  And  of  this  movement  Keble  and  Newman 
and  Doctor  Pusey  were  the  leading  spirits. 

In  1835  Keble’s  father  died.  In  that  year  he  married 
and  became  Vicar  of  Hursley,  a  lovely  village  across  the 
downs  from  Winchester.  There  he  remained  with  entire 
contentment  for  the  rest  of  his  days,  a  famous  man,  but 
leading  the  life  of  a  retired  scholar  and  faithful  countiy 
'  pastor.  He  rebuilt  the  village  church,  largely  out  of  the 
profits  of  The  Christian  Year ;  and  in  his  daily  services 
and  parish  ministries  carried  put  the  church  principles 
for  which  he  stood. 

Tender-hearted,  kindly,  gentle,  and  even  playful  in 
manner,  Keble  was  none  the  less  firm  and  decided  in 
holding  and  advocating  extreme  High  Church  views. 
He  gave  himself  very  earnestly  to  forwarding  “the 
movement,”  and  had  but  scant  regard  for  what  he 
called  “The  Protestant  party.”  But,  unlike  his  friend 
Newman,  he  saw  his  way  clear  to  remain  in  the  Church 
of  England.  It  is  indeed  impossible  to  think  of  him  as 
making  such  a  breach  with  his  traditions  and  familiar 
surroundings,  or  as  surviving  it  if  made. 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL ,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR  33 


Keble’s  mind  was  that  of  a  poet  and  not  that  of  a 
logician.  Intuition  and  feeling  were  more  to  him  than 
reasoning,  and  he  instinctively  craved  a  comfortable  sup¬ 
port  of  authority  as  the  sanction  for  his  opinions  and 
acts.  H  is  character,  in  its  childlikeness  and  purity,  its 
entire  unworldliness,  its  devotional  fervor  and  spirit  of 
consecration,  was  lovely  indeed.  Taken  together  with 
his  power  of  substituting  lofty  poetry  for  polemics,  it  has 
given  him  extraordinary  influence  within  the  Church  of 
England.  Beyond  its  bounds  that  influence  was  neces¬ 
sarily  limited  by  a  theory  of  the  church  that  withdrew 
him  from  any  real  sympathy  and  communion  with  his 
fellow  Christians  in  other  folds.  His  position  in  hym- 
nody  does  not  by  any  means  correspond  with  the  impor¬ 
tant  place  he  occupies  as  a  religious  poet.  The  two 
lovely  hymns  extracted  from  the  opening  poems  of 
The  Christian  Year  come  near  to  exhausting  the  materials 
that  are  available  without  an  effort  of  piecing  together 
unrelated  passages.  It  is  a  book  of  meditative  poetry 
and  not  of  hymns,  Keble’s  other  poetical  works  include 
Lyra  Innocentium ,  in  which  childhood  is  contemplated 
with  the  light  from  stained-glass  windows  falling  upon 
it ;  and  also  a  complete  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms. 
The  latter  was  never  used  as  a  hymn  book,  but  is  far 
superior  to  the  average  attempt  to  do  a  thing  which,  as 
Keble  himself  knew  and  acknowledged,  is  inherently 
impossible.  The  hymn  beginning  “  God,  the  Lord,  a 
King  remaineth  ”  (  The  Hymnal ,  No.  89)  is  an  example  of 
Keble’s  renderings.  From  time  to  time  he  contributed 

o 

a  few  other  hymns  to  various  books  compiled  by  personal 
friends.  He  also  assisted  Earl  Nelson  in  editing  The 
Salisbury  Hymn  Book  of  1857.  In  this  he  printed  his 


3 


34 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


familiar  wedding  hymn,  “The  Voice  that  Breathed  o’er 
Eden”  (The  Hymnal ,  No.  687). 

Keble  died  on  March  29th,  1866,  at  Bournemouth, 
where  he  had  gone  for  the  health  of  his  wife,  who  sur¬ 
vived  him  but  six  weeks.  The  last  book  he  had  in  his 
hand  was  a  hymn  book — Roundell  Palmer’s  Book  of 
Praise.  He  had  sent  for  it,  because  unable  to  recall  all 
the  verses  of  Bishop  Ken’s  Evening  Hymn,  which  he 
was  accustomed  to  say  in  the  night-watches  by  his  wife. 
The  graves  of  the  poet  and  his  wife  are  in  Hursley 
church-yard. 


Some  Points  for  discussion 

(1)  Can  even  a  hymn  so  tender  and  lovely  as  this  be 
sung  thoughtlessly  ?  There  is  in  the  diary  of  the  late 
Archbishop  Benson  a  good  instance  of  the  thoughtful 
hearing  of  the  hymn.  He  was  preaching  in  the  chapel 
of  Eton  College,  and  notes  :  “  In  Evening  Service  I  could 
not  see  one  single  boy  who  was  not  singing  the  Evening 
Hymn  after  Service,  ‘  Sun  of  My  Soul,’ — and  th$  last 
verse  was  most  touching,  and  most  touchingly  sung,  as 
one  thought  of  school  as  the  waking  place  of  so  many 
.souls  and  minds  : — 

“  ‘  Come  near  and  bless  us  when  we  wake, 

Ere  through  the  world  our  way  we  take.'  ” 


(2)  The  many  alterations  made  in  the  text  of  the  hymn 
by  various  editors  may  well  be  passed  by.  The  revisions 
of  Keble  himself  are  more  interesting.  Two  autograph 
manuscripts  of  The  Christian  Year ,  or  parts  of  it,  are  in 
existence,  and  of  that  dated  1822  a  facsimile  has  been 


SUN  OF  MY  SOUL ,  THOU  SAVIOUR  DEAR  35 

printed.  Its  differences  from  the  Hymnal  text  are 
these : — 

Verse  2,  line  2  :  drooping  eyelids. 

“  “  “4:  our  Saviour’s. 

“  3  “  1  :  to  eve. 

“  4  “  1  :  wandering  soul. 

“  “  “  2  :  has  spurned. 

“  “  “  3  :  Thy  gracious  work. 

“  “  “  4  :  Let  him  not  sleep  to-night  in  sin. 

The  Hymnal  text  here  given  is  that  of  the  second  edition 
(1827)  of  The  Christian  Year.  It  differs  from  that  of  the 
first  edition  in  only  two  places.  In  the  opening  line  of 
the  fourth  verse  the  first  edition  followed  the  manuscript 
form,  “  If  some  poor  wandering  soul  of  thine  ”  ;  and  the 
last  line  of  that  verse  began  (oddly  enough),  “  Let  her  no 
more.”  Can  there  be  any  question  that  in  this  second 
edition  Keble  improved  the  text  of  these  lines? 

There  is,  however,  one  small  particular  in  which  the 
Hymnal  text  differs  from  that  of  all  the  early  printed 
editions.  In  them  the  last  line  of  the  fifth  verse  is 
printed  to  read  “  Like  infant’s  slumbers,”  instead  of  “  Like 
infants’  slumbers.”  In  Keble’s  manuscript  the  position 
of  the  apostrophe  is  problematical.  In  later  editions  of 
The  Christian  Year  the  word  is  printed  “  infants  ,  whether 
or  no  by  Keble’s  authority  does  not  appear.  It  is  hard 
to  believe  that  he  would  have  defended  “  like  infant  s 
slumbers  ”  as  good  English,  if  his  attention  was  called  to 
it.  It  seems  more  likely  that  it  was  an  overlooked  mis¬ 
print. 

(3)  What  passage  of  Scripture  suggested  the  lines  : — 

“  O  may  no  earth-born  cloud  arise 
To  hide  Thee  from  Thy  servant’s  eyes”  ? 


36  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

(4)  The  familiar  tune,  Hursley,  was  arranged  for  this 
hymn  from  an  old  German  melody:  Abends  (The  Hymnal, 
No.  18),  Keble  (No.  61),  Sun  of  My  Soul  (No.  118), 
and  Clolata  (No.  444),  were  all  specially  written  for  it. 
Of  the  five  tunes,  which  best  expresses  the  spirit  of  the 
hymn  ? 


IV 


HOW  FIRM  A  FOUNDATION, 

THE  LORD 


YE  SAINTS  OF 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  How  firm  a  foundation,  ye  saints  of  the  Lord, 

Is  laid  for  your  faith  in  His  excellent  word  ! 

What  more  can  He  say  than  to  you  He  hath  said, — 
You  who  unto  Jesus  for  refuge  have  fled? 

2  “Fear  not,  I  am  with  thee,  O  be  not  dismayed; 

I,  I  am  thy  God,  and  will  still  give  thee  aid  ; 

I’ll  strengthen  thee,  help  thee,  and  cause  thee  to  stand, 
Upheld  by  My  righteous,  omnipotent  hand. 


3  “  When  through  the  deep  waters  I  call  thee  to  go, 
The  rivers  of  woe  shall  not  thee  overflow; 

For  I  will  be  with  thee,  thy  troubles  to  bless, 
And  sanctify  to  thee  thy  deepest  distress. 


4  “  When  through  fiery  trials  thy  pathway  shall  lie, 
My  grace,  all-sufficient,  shall  be  thy  supply; 
The  flame  shall  not  hurt  thee  ;  I  only  design 
Thy  dross  to  consume,  and  thy  gold  to  refine. 


5  “  E’en  down  to  old  age  all  My  people  shall  prove 
My  sovereign,  eternal,  unchangeable  love  ; 

And  when  hoary  hairs  shall  their  temples  adorn, 
Like  lambs  they  shall  still  in  My  bosom  be  borne. 


37 


38  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

“6  “  The  soul  that  on  Jesus  hath  leaned  for  repose, 

I  will  not,  I  will  not  desert  to  his  foes  ; 

That  soul,  though  all  hell  should  endeavor  to  shake, 

I’ll  never,  no,  never,  no,  never  forsake.” 

“K - ”  in  Rippon’s  “Selection  of  Hymns,”  1787 

Note. — Six  verses  out  of  seven:  the  text  being  taken  from  Dr.  Rippcnh 
book. 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Outside  of  the  great  hymn  writers,  few  names  are 
more  familiar  to  a  student  of  hymns  than  that  of  Dr. 
John  Rippon.  He  was  pastor,  from  1773  to  1836,  of  a 
Particular  Baptist  church  in  London.  He  had  great 
leputation  and  influence  both  as  man  and  as  pastor;  but 
of  all  the  things  he  accomplished,  the  one  best  remem¬ 
bered  is  the  hymn  book  he  edited.  Pie  and  his  people 
were  alike  devoted  to  singing  the  psalms  and  hymns  of 
Dr.  Watts.  Neither  had  any  wish  to  supersede  them, 
but  Dr.  Rippon  had  come  to  feel  that  hymns  were 
needed  on  some  subjects  and  occasions  omitted  by  Dr. 
Watts.  And  hence  he  was  led  to  publish,  in  the  year 
1787,  a  hymn  book  with  this  title:  “A  Selection  of 
Hymns  from  the  Best  Authors,  Intended  to  be  an  Ap¬ 
pendix  to  Dr.  Watts’s  Psalms  and  Hymns.  By  John 
Rippon,  A.  M.” 

It  was  a  book  of  great  merit,  and  was  used  widely 
and  for  long,  many  editions  being  printed  in  England 
and  this  country ;  and  Dr.  Rippon  is  reputed  to  have 
accumulated  a  comfortable  estate  from  his  profits  on  the 
publication.  The  copy  of  the  first  edition  in  the  posses¬ 
sion  of  the  present  writer  is  graced  by  Dr.  Rippon’s 
portrait.  But  as  this  copy  is  in  special  binding,  he  ven¬ 
tures  to  hope  that  it  is  one  of  a  few  prepared  for  per- 


££r>i‘rf<rn,(7uMi+tu{  cOi^A>^A^t/r23.f‘/86. 


FRONTISPIECE  TO  “  RIPPON’S  SELECTION” 


40 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  IIYMNS 


sonal  friends,  and  that  copies  intended  for  use  in  worship 
were  not  so  embellished.  In  any  event  Dr.  Rippon 
must  be  credited  with  the  very  great  services  he  ren¬ 
dered  to  hymnody.  The  remarkable  feature  of  the 
book,  which  has  given  it  permanent  fame,  is  the  great 
number  of  original  hymns  secured  by  him  and  there 
first  printed.  Many  of  these  have  been  in  use  ever 
since. 

From  this  copy  of  Dr.  Rippon’s  book  the  photogra¬ 
pher  has  reproduced  for  us,  even  to  the  light  color  of 
the  ink,  the  page  containing  the  most  famous  of  these 
hymns.  Looking  upon  the  facsimile,  we  have  before  us 
the  original  text  of  “  How  Firm  a  Foundation,”  from 
the  motto  at  the  top  to  the  editor’s  note  at  the  bottom, 
with  all  the  quaint  capitalization,  just  as  their  eyes  saw 
it  who  first  found  inspiration  in  singing  it  so  long  ago. 

The  facsimile  gives  us  not  only  the  text,  but  all  that 
is  actually  known  of  the  authorship  of  the  hymn.  Dr. 
Rippon’s  habit  was  to  print  the  author’s  name  above  a 
hymn.  This  hymn  is  one  of  three  to  which  the  only 
signature  is  the  letter  “  K  ”  followed  by  a  dash.  The 
other  two,  beginning,  “  In  songs  of  sublime  adoration 
and  praise,”  and  “The  Bible  is  justly  esteemed,”  do  not 
arouse  much  interest.  But  the  authorship  of  this  one 
seems  to  have  been  discussed  from  the  first,  and  ever 
since  has  excited  much  curiosity  and  speculation.  Such 
a  problem  has  its  own  fascination.  One  cannot  but  think 
of  the  unknown  writer,  all  unconscious  that  by  signing 
his  name  to  the  hymn  he  would  have  won  immortality, 
and  of  the  other  people  who  knew  the  secret,  but  are  not 
here  to  answer  our  questions. 

Naturally  we  turn  to  Dr.  Rippon’s  preface,  first  of  all, 


You,  who  unto]  es-u  s  for  Refuge  have  lied.  . 

4  In, every  Condition,  in  Sidknefs,  in  Health,  • 

In  Poverty’s  Vale,  or  abounding'  in  Wealth  ; . 
j\t  Koine  and  Abroad  ,  on  the  Land  on  the 
'  As  thy  Days  may  demand,  fell  thy  Strength 

-  (t  ever  be.  .  ^ 

3  “Fear  not,  I  am  with  thee,  6  lie  not  dmnay  W 
44  I,  I  am  thy  God,  and  will  ftilt  give  thee  Aid  ; 

’ 44  111  Hrengthen  thee,  help,  thee,  and  caulb  thee 

to  Jftaadi  . 

14  Upheld  by  my  righteous  omnipotent  Hand. 

4  14  When  thro’  the  deep  Waters  I  call  thee  to  go,- 
44  The  Rivers  of  Woe  fell  not  thee  overflow  $ 

’  “.For  I  will  be  with  thee,  thy  Troubles  to  biefs, 
“  And  farTtify  to  thee,  thy  deepeft  Diftrefs, 

5  44  When  thro’  he ry Trials  thy  Pathway  fell  He, 
44  My  Grace  ail  fufficient  fell  be  thy  Supply  j 


44  The  Flame  fell  not  hurt  thee,  I  only  deligri 


44  ThyDrofs  to  confum?,a«d  thyGold  to  refine.* 

6  44  Even  down  to  old  Age,  all  my  People 'fell  prove 
“My  fovereign, eternal,  unchangeable  Lo.ve  • 

«  And  when  hoary  Hairs  fell  their  Temples 

**  adorn,  ' ;  . 

<4Likelambs they fhall  dill  in  my  feofo-m  be  borne. 

j  “The  SoulthatonjESus  hath lean’d.forRepoie, 
44 1  mill  not,  1  mill  wt  £si |rt  to; his  Foes  j 
“ThatSouhtbo’  allHell  fhouid  endeavor  tolhake, 
44  I'll  newer— m  newer- — no  never  tar&ke  . 

*  Agreeable  to  Dr, Doddridge’s  Translation  of  Hein  Hii. .5*  - 


FACSIMILE  OF  THE  FIRST  PRINTING  OF  THE  HYMN 


42 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


to  see  if  it  throws  any  light  upon  the  matter.  After 
speaking  of  distinguished  men  who  have  contributed 
hymns,  he  adds  :  “  In  most  Places,  where  the  Names  of 
the  Authors  were  known,  they  are  put  at  full  Length, 
but  the  Hymns  which  are  not  so  distinguished,  or  which 
have  only  a  single  Letter  prefixed  to  them,  were,  many 
of  them,  composed  by  a  Person  unknown,  or  else  have 
undergone  some  Considerable  Alterations.”  What  Dr. 
Rippon  has  in  mind  to  say  here  is  that  many  of  the 
unsigned  hymns  were  composed  or  recast  by  himself 
(the  “Person  unknown”),  and  that  generally  (but  not 
always)  he  has  given  the  author’s  name  in  full  when  he 
knew  it.  That  is  all,  and  it  throws  no  light  here. 

As  long  as  Dr.  Rippon  lived  to  reprint  his  book,  the 
signature  to  this  hymn  remained  unchanged.  After  his 
death,  and  when  the  book  had  passed  from  the  control 
of  his  representatives,  an  enlarged  edition  appeared,  in 
which  “K”  is  changed  to  “KIRKHAM.”  Who  made 
the  change,  and  for  what  reason,  cannot  now  be  known. 
Very  likely  it  was  based  merely  on  hearsay.  Certainly 
the  new  editor  did  not  know  who  wrote  the  two  other 
hymns  originally  ascribed  to  “  K,”  for  they  are  left 
anonymous,  even  that  letter  being  dropped.  The  ascrip¬ 
tions  of  authorship  in  this  edition  are  so  careless  and 
full  of  errors  as  to  carry  little  weight.  In  1788  Thomas 
Kirkham  published  a  collection  of  hymns,  but  those 
who  have  examined  it  say  that  this  hymn  is  not  among 
them.  And  there  is  no  evidence  that  it  was  written  by 
any  one  of  the  name  of  Kirkham. 

Another  solution  of  the  puzzle  was  offered  by  Daniel 
Sedgwick,  He  was  a  second-hand  bookseller  of  London, 
who  collected  hymn  books  and  studied  English  hymns 


HOIV  FIRM  A  FOUNDATION 


43 


until  he  knew  more  of  their  history  than  any  one  else  of 
his  time.  He  suggested  that  “  K  ”  was  probably  put  for 
Keith,  meaning  George  Keith,  a  London  bookseller, 
son-in-law  of  the  famous  Dr.  Gill,  and  who  was  said  to 
compose  hymns  based  on  his  father-in-law’s  sermons. 
Dr.  Julian,  who  examined  Mr.  Sedgwick’s  papers  after 
his  death,  reports  that  his  guess  was  based  on  nothing 
more  substantial  than  a  statement  of  an  old  woman 
whom  Sedgwick  met  in  an  almshouse.  But  his  name 
carried  a  certain  authority,  and  his  guess  grew  into  a  tra¬ 
dition.  Many  hymn  books,  even  to  the  present  time, 
ascribe  the  hymn  to  George  Keith,  sometimes  with,  and 
sometimes  without,  a  mark  of  interrogation. 

So  the  matter  rested  until  taken  up  by  a  well-known 
editor  of  Boston,  Mr.  H.  L.  Hastings,  who  successfully 
solved  the  problem  of  the  authorship  of  another  hymn, 
“  What  a  Friend  We  Have  in  Jesus.”  Mr.  Hastings 
published  the  account  of  his  investigations  in  his  paper, 
The  Christian ,  for  May,  1887,  and  it  will  be  best  to  have 
the  story  in  his  own  words  : 

“  In  preparing  hymns  and  music  for  Songs  of  Pilgrim¬ 
age ,  we  were  led  to  go  over  not  only  Dr.  Rippon’s  hymn 
book  but  also  his  Tune  Book ,  edited  by  Thomas  Walker, 
who  for  a  time  led  the  singing  in  Dr.  Rippon’s  church. 
We  noticed  that  over  the  hymn  in  question  was  placed 
the  name  of  a  tune  to  which  it  was  to  be  sung,  which 
was  Geard.  On  looking  up  that  tune  in  the  book,  we 
found  it  was  composed  by  R.  Keene.  There  being  but 
two  tunes  of  that  metre  in  the  entire  book,  the  thought 
arose,  was  the  ‘  K  ’  of  the  hymn  the  same  person  as  the 
‘  R.  Keene,’  to  whose  tune  it  was  to  be  sung?  Examin¬ 
ing  both  hymn  and  tune,  they  seemed  to  be  made  for 


44 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  each  other,  and  the  evidence  seemed  to  point  to  R. 
Keene  as  the  author  of  the  hymn ;  and  we  accordingly 
inserted  it  in  Songs  of  Pilgrimage ,  with  the  original 
tune,  and  placed  under  it  the  name  of  R.  Keene,  with  a 
query  (?)  to  indicate  uncertainty  as  to  its  origin. 

“Visiting  London,  near  the  close  of  1886,  we  called 
upon  the  venerable  Charles  Cordelier,  and  asked  him, 
Who  wrote  ‘  How  Firm  a  Foundation’?  He  gave  the 
names  Kirkham,  Keith,  and  Keene,  but  could  give  no 
definite  reason  for  preferring  one  to  another,  until  we 
laid  the  facts  before  him.  Turning  to  Keene  s  tune, 
Geard,  which  he  had  copied  into  a  book,  he  at  once 
recognized  it  as  the  tune  to  which,  kilty  ycais  befoic, 

o 

they  were  accustomed  to  sing  that  hymn,  and  he  also 
remembered  that  its  author,  R.  Keene,  was  once  a  leader 
of  the  singing  in  Dr.  Rippon’s  church,  and  that  the 
hymn  in  question  was  said  to  have  been  written  by  a 
precentor  in  Dr.  Rippon’s  church.  After  considerable 
thought,  he  recalled  that  half  a  century  before,  when  he 
himself  led  the  singing  in  the  Baptist  church,  and  used 
to  meet  with  the  different  precentors  from  other  meet¬ 
ings  he  had  heard  the  authorship  of  that  hymn  attrib- 
uted  to  Keene,  and  he  finally  remembered  that  an 
aeed  woman  named  Edgehill,  a  member  of  Dr.  Rippon’s 
church,  and  the  wife  of  a  bookseller  in  Brick  Lane,  had 
told  him  that  Keene  was  the  author  of  that  hymn. 

“  There  mieht  be  various  reasons  why  a  musician  and 

o  * 

choir  master  might  put  his  name  to  a  tune  which  he 
composed,  while  modesty,  or  other  considerations,  might 
cause  him  to  append  only  his  initial  to  a  new  hymn ; 
and,  in  view  of  all  the  facts,  we  think  we  may  consider 
the  question  settled,  and  definitely  assign  the  authorship 


now  FIRM  A  FOUNDATION 


45 


“  of  the  hymn  to  R.  Keene,  a  precentor  in  Dr.  Rippon’s 
church,  and  the  author  of  the  tune  Geard,  to  which  it 
was  sung.” 

Such  was  Mr.  Hastings’s  conclusion,  which  for  some 
reason  has  not  attracted  much  attention  ;  but  it  has  had 
a  striking  confirmation  at  the  hands  of  another  investi¬ 
gator.  In  preparing  a  notice  of  this  hymn  for  his  Dic¬ 
tionary  of  Hymnology ,  Dr.  John  Julian  found  that  in 
Dr.  Fletcher’s  Baptist  Collection  of  1822  the  “  K— ”  of 
Rippon  was  extended  to  “  Kn,”  and  in  his  edition  of 
1835,  still  further,  to  “Keen,”  while  in  the  preface  Dr. 
Fletcher  stated  that  he  was  greatly  assisted  by  Thomas 
Walker,  and  acknowledged  his  extensive  acquaintance 
with  sacred  poety.  Now,  this  Thomas  Walker  was  Dr. 
Rippon’s  precentor  and  the  editor  of  his  Tune  Book ,  in 
which  Geard  appears.  Taking  this  association  into 
account,  Dr.  Julian  argues  that  Dr.  Walker  based  his 
ascription  of  authorship  upon  actual  knowledge  of  the 
facts,  and  that  “  we  are  justified  in  concluding  that  the 
ascription  to  this  hymn  must  be  that  of  an  unknown 
person  of  the  name  of  Keen.” 

We  have,  then,  a  result  practically  the  same  from  two 
independent  investigations  carried  on  in  each  case  with¬ 
out  knowledge  of  the  other,  and  the  reasonableness  of 
such  conclusion  seems  greatly  strengthened  by  the  coin¬ 
cidence.  Mr.  Hastings  goes  a  step  beyond  Dr.  Julian  in 
fixing  the  identity  of  Keene.  The  present  writer  would 
add  further  particulars  if  he  could.  In  the  letters  of  the 
Rev.  George  Whitefield  are  many  references  to  a  Robert 
Keene,  woolen  draper  in  the  Minories,  London,  who  was 
Whitefield’s  faithful  friend,  a  trustee  of  his  Tabernacle, 
and  who  lived  until  1793.  But  there  seems  to  be  nothing 


46  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

that  would  associate  him  with  Dr.  Rippon’s  Baptist 
hymn  book. 

The  Story  of  the  hymn 

The  hymn  seems  to  have  come  into  immediate  use 
upon  its  appearance  in  Dr.  Rippon’s  book.  Copies  of 
the  book  were  brought  over  to  this  country,  and  in  1790 
this  hymn  was  put  into  the  hymn  book  of  the  Philadel¬ 
phia  Baptist  Association.  In  1792,  only  five  years  after 
its  original  publication,  the  whole  book  was  reprinted  in  - 
New  York,  so  that  the  hymn  began  its  career  here  almost 
as  soon  as  in  England,  and  for  some  reason  it  has  won 
a  more  lasting  popularity  here  than  there.  So  familiar 
is  the  hymn  to  us,  we  imagine  it  to  be  a  standard  wher¬ 
ever  English  hymns  are  sung.  But  such  is  not  the  fact. 
It  never  gained  a  foothold  within  the  Church  of  England. 
It  is  not  sung  by  the  Wesleyans  or  Presbyterians  of 
Great  Britain,  and  but  little  by  the  Congregationalists. 
Dr.  H order,  the  best  known  hymnologist  among  the 
latter,  speaks  of  it  in  his  Hymn  Lover  as  a  hymn  of  no 
great  merit.  Its  use,  over  there,  is  mostly  among 
Baptists. 

In  this  country,  on  the  other  hand,  few  hymns  have 
been  sung  more  generally  or  more  enthusiastically.  It 
has  a  part  in  the  history  of  our  common  Christianity. 
Very  likely  the  stirring  tune  to  which  it  has  for  so  long 
been  sung  throughout  the  United  States  is  partly  respon¬ 
sible  for  this  popularity.  That  tune  does  not  rightly 
belong  to  these  words,  and,  as  in  the  case  of  the  hymn, 
its  origin  has  never  been  certainly  established.  The 
statement  of  so  many  books  that  it  was  composed  by 
John  Reading  rests  on  no  real  foundation.  The  familiar 


HOW  FIRM  A  FOUNDATION 


4  7 


name,  “  Portuguese  Hymn,”  is  an  error  started  by  one 
who  heard  it  in  the  chapel  of  the  Portuguese  Embassy 
in  London,  and  hastily  assumed  it  to  be  a  Portuguese 
melody.  All  that  is  actually  known  of  the  tune  is  that 
it  was  the  music  to  a  Latin  Christmas  hymn  (“  Adeste 
Lideles  ”),  sung  in  Roman  Catholic  chapels  throughout 
England  as  early  as  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
Our  well-known  “O  Come,  All  Ye  Faithful  ”  ( The 
Hymnal ,  No.  170),  is  a  translation  of  the  hymn  to  which 
the  tune  rightly  belongs. 

r  The  position  which  the  hymn  “  How  Firm  a  Founda¬ 
tion,”  thus  mated  to  the  Christmas  tune,  has  taken  among 
us  was  strikingly  illustrated  in  the  late  Spanish  War. 
The  incident  is  related  in  The  Sunday-School  Times  for 
December  7th,  1901,  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  Curtis  Guild, 
Jr.,  late  Inspector-General  of  the  Seventh  Army  Corps. 
The  corps  was  encamped  along  the  hills  at  Quemados, 
near  Havana,  Cuba.  O11  Christmas  eve  of  1898  Colonel 
Guild  sat  before  his  tent  in  the  balmy  tropical  night, 
chatting  with  a  fellow-officer  of  Christmas  and  home. 
Suddenly  from  the  camp  of  the  Forty-ninth  Iowa  rang 
a  sentinel’s  call,  “  Number  ten  ;  twelve  o’clock,  and  all’s 
well  !” 

“  It  was  Christmas  morning.  Scarcely  had  the  cry  of 
the  sentinel  died  away,  when  from  the  bandsmen’s  tents 
of  that  same  regiment  there  rose  the  music  of  an  old, 
familiar  hymn,  and  one  clear  baritone  voice  led  the  chorus 
that  quickly  ran  along  those  moonlit  fields  :  ‘  How  firm 
a  foundation,  ye  saints  of  the  Lord !’  Another  voice 
joined  in,  and  another,  and  another,  and  in  a  moment 
the  whole  regiment  was  singing,  and  then  the  Sixth 
Missouri  joined  in,  with  the  Fourth  Virginia,  and  all  the 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4S 

“rest,  till  there,  on  the  long  ridges  above  the  gieat  city 
whence  Spanish  tyranny  once  went  forth  to  enslave  the 
New  World,  a  whole  American  army  corps  was  sing¬ 
ing 

<f  *  Fear  not,  I  am  with  thee,  O  be  not  dismayed ; 

I,  I  am  thy  God,  and  will  still  give  thee  aid  ; 

I’ll  strengthen  thee,  help  thee,  and  cause  thee  to  stand, 

Upheld  by  My  righteous,  omnipotent  hand.’ 

“The  Northern  soldier  knew  the  hymn  as  one  he 
had  learned  beside  his  mother’s  knee.  To  the  Southern 
soldier  it  was  that  and  something  more ;  it  was  the 
favorite  hymn  of  General  Robert  E.  Lee,  and  was  sung 
at  that  great  commander’s  funeral. 

“  Protestant  and  Catholic,  South  and  Noith,  singing 
together  on  Christmas  day  in  the  morning,— that’s  an 

American  army  !” 

And  if  any  one  lias  felt  a  sense  of  impropriety  in 
divorcing  the  old  Christmas  music  from  its  proper  words, 
surely  he  may  feel  that  it  came  to  its  own  again  that 
morning.  Such  an  incident,  and  what  it  implies,  inclines 
one  rather  to  the  hope  that  “  How  Firm  a  Foundation 
may  never  cease  to  be  sung  among  us,  and  that  it  may 
never  be  set  to  any  other  tune. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Was  Mr.  Hastings  justified  in  saying  that  the  ques¬ 
tion  of  authorship  is  now  settled  in  favor  of  R.  Keene  ? 

(2)  The  literary  method  of  this  hymn  is  peculiar,  and 
more  like  that  of  a  homily  than  of  a  song.  The  singer 
addresses  his  fellow-saints  with  an  assertion  that  a  solid 
foundation  for  their  confident  faith  is  laid  in  Scripture. 


HOW  FIRM  A  FOUNDATION 


49 


This  he  emphasizes  by  the  rhetorical  question,  Could 
God  have  promised  more  ?  The  balance  of  the  hymn  is 
simply  the  citation  of  his  proof-texts.  Can  you  trace  in 
the  Scriptures  these  “  precious  promises  ”  that  are  quoted 
in  the  hymn  ? 

(3)  The  last  line  brings  out  the  impressive  repetition 
of  negatives  in  Hebrews  xiii.  5  (“  I  will  in  no  wise  let 
thee  go ;  no,  nor  will  I  forsake  thee  ”).  In  the  minds  of 
many  clergymen  who  are  graduates  of  Princeton  Semi¬ 
nary,  this  line  is  inevitably  associated  with  an  incident 
of  the  last  years  of  its  much-beloved  theological  pro¬ 
fessor,  Dr.  Charles  Hodge.  The  tradition  still  lingers 
there  that  one  evening,  in  conducting  prayers  in  the 
Oratory,  the  venerable  man,  in  reading  this  hymn,  which 
he  had  announced  to  be  sung,  was  so  overcome  by  his 
emotions  that  on  reaching  the  last  line  he  could  only 
indicate  by  gestures,  keeping  time  with  the  rhythm  of  the 
words,  his  own  appropriation  of  God’s  assurance  that 
He  would  never,  no,  never,  no,  never  forsake  the  soul 
that  hath  leaned  on  Christ. 

The  foot-note  to  this  last  line  of  the  hymn  when  it 
originally  appeared  in  Rippon’s  Selection — “  agreeable  to 
Dr.  Doddridge’s  Translation  of  Heb.  xii.  5  ”  (see  the 
facsimile) — was  one  that  at  the  time  required  no  explana¬ 
tion.  The  allusion  is  to  the  paraphrase  of  that  verse  as 
given  in  The  Family  Expositor ;  or  a  Paraphrase  and 
Version  of  the  New  Testament ,  with  Critical  Notes  and 
Practical  Improvements ,  by  the  famous  Dr.  Philip  Dod¬ 
dridge.  This  book  had  won  enthusiastic  praise  not  only 
from  nonconformists,  but  from  divines  and  scholars  of 
the  Church  of  Emgland,  and  had  already  become  one  of 
the  familiar  household  books  of  the  period.  The  verse 
4 


50 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


in  question  there  reads  :  “  I  will  not ,  I  will  not  leave  tlue , 
I  will  never ,  never,  never  forsake  thee.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  the  author  of  the  hymn  has  not  only  reproduced  in 
the  last  line  the  tripled  “never”  of  Dr.  Doddridge’s 
version,  but  also,  in  the  line  immediately  preceding,  its 
repetition  of  the  “  I  will  not. 


V 

LORD,  WITH  GLOWING  HEART  I’D  PRAISE  THEE 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Lord,  with  glowing  heart  I’d  praise  Thee 

For  the  bliss  Thy  love  bestows, 

For  the  pardoning  grace  that  saves  me, 

And  the  peace  that  from  it  flows  : 

Help,  O  God,  my  weak  endeavor; 

This  dull  soul  to  rapture  raise  : 

Thou  must  light  the  flame,  or  never 
Can  my  love  be  warmed  to  praise. 

2  Praise,  my  soul,  the  God  that  sought  thee, 

Wretched  wanderer,  far  astray; 

Found  thee  lost,  and  kindly  brought  thee 
From  the  paths  of  death  away  : 

Praise,  with  love’s  devoutest  feeling, 

Him  who  saw  thy  guilt-born  fear, 

And,  the  light  of  hope  revealing, 

Bade  the  blood-stained  cross  appear. 

3  Lord,  this  bosom’s  ardent  feeling 

Vainly  would  my  lips  express  : 

Low  before  Thy  footstool  kneeling, 

Deign  Thy  suppliant’s  prayer  to  bless  : 

Let  Thy  grace,  my  soul’s  chief  treasure, 

•  Love’s  pure  flame  within  me  raise ; 

And,  since  words  can  never  measure, 

Let  my  life  show  forth  Thy  praise. 

Francis  Scott  Key,  1817 

Note. — The  text  is  taken  from  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  Church  Poetry ,  1823. 

5i 


52 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

To  a  patriotic  American  Christian  it  is  a  real  satisfac¬ 
tion  to  find  in  the  hymn  book  of  his  Church  a  hymn  by 
the  author  of  “  The  Star  Spangled  Banner.”  And  the 
hymn  is  not  unworthy  of  its  place.  A  good  judge,  the 
Rev.  Frederick  M.  Bird,  in  an  essay  upon  the  Hym- 
nology  of  the  Protestant  Plpiscopal  Church,  called  Mr. 
Key’s  hymn  “  as  memorable  a  piece  of  work  ”  as  his 
“  Star  Spangled  Banner.”  “  It  has,”  he  says,  “  high 
devotional  and  fair  literary  merit,  and  is  endeared  to 
many  thousands  by  long  associations.”  There  is,  no 
doubt,  a  flavor  of  an  older  fashion  in  the  rhetoric  of  the 
hymn,  but  its  expression  of  Christian  gratitude  still  rings 
true;  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  use  of  the  hymn  is 
more  widespread  to-day  than  ever  before. 

In  1823  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  A.  Muhlenberg,  after¬ 
ward  famous  as  the  author  of  “  I  Would  not  Live 
Alway,”  printed  a  hymn  book  under  the  name  of  Church 
Poetry.  “  Here  first  (so  far  as  is  known)  appeared  Fran¬ 
cis  S.  Key’s  very  genuine  hymn,  ‘  Lord,  with  Glowing 
Heart  I’d  Praise  Thee,’  ”  says  Mr.  Bird  in  the  essay 
already  referred  to.  Such  has  been  the  general  belief 
up  to  this  time,  and  hence  in  every  hymnal  the  hymn 
bears  the  date  1823.  But  in  our  present  study  we  shall 
be  able  to  make  use  of  some  facts  not  hitherto  known. 

In  the  autumn  of  1900  the  writer  saw  in  a  New  York 
auction  catalogue  the  entry  of  a  copy  of  this  hymn  in 
Mr.  Key’s  autograph,  which  he  secured.  It  is  written 
on  a  half  sheet  of  foolscap  and  inscribed  in  the  margin, 
“  Written  by  the  author,  F.  Key,  for  Sylvester  Nash.” 
Hitherto  only  three  eight-line  verses  of  the  hymn  had 


LORD ,  WITH  GLOWING  HEART  HD  ERA LSE  THEE  53 


been  known  to  hymnologists,  as  printed  in  Dr.  Muhlen¬ 
berg’s  book  and  always  since.  But  the  autograph  copy 
has  an  additional  verse  (or  two  of  four  lines  each)  as 
reproduced  in  the  accompanying  facsimile.  This  was 


the  original  third  verse,  preceding  the  last  one  as  here 
printed. 

And  now,  as  regards  the  date.  In  December  of  1901, 
while  having  some  part  in  the  rearrangement  of  the 
library  of  the  Presbyterian  Historical  Society  in  Phila¬ 
delphia,  the  writer  took  the  opportunity  of  examining 
some  old  periodicals,  on  the  chance  of  what  he  might 
find.  Among  them  were  three  volumes  of  The  Christian 
Messenger ,  an  unsectarian  religious  magazine,  edited  and 
published  by  Joshua  T.  Russell,  in  Baltimore.  At  page 
288  of  the  first  volume,  at  the  end  of  the  number  for 
Saturday  September  6th,  1817,  he  found  the  original 


54 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


printing  of  this  hymn.  It  is  printed  in  eight  four-line 
verses,  and  is  prefaced  by  this  note  : 

<<The  following  Hymn  was  composed  by  a  gentleman, 
formerly  a  resident  of  this  city,  distinguished  for  his  eminent 
talents  and  exemplary  piety.” 

This  little  discovery  changes  the  accepted  date  of  the 
hymn  from  1823  to  1817.  The  additional  eight  lines  of 
the  manuscript  are  included  in  the  hymn  in  the  maga¬ 
zine,  and  this  seems  to  be  the  first  and  last  time  they 
have  been  printed  until  now.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  chose  to 
omit  them  from  his  hymn  book  in  1823.  And  since 
then  every  one  else,  even  the  editor  of  Mi.  Key  s  poems 
(which  were  gathered  up  and  published  in  1857)?  seems 

completely  to  have  lost  sight  of  them. 

In  1826  Mr.  Key’s  hymn,  in  its  three-verse  form,  was 
given  a  place  in  the  Hymns  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church ,  and  it  has  retained  that  place  in  the  hymnals 
from  time  to  time  authorized  for  use  in  that  Church.  It 
was  introduced  to  a  much  wider  company  when,  in  1830, 
the  Rev.  Joshua  Leavitt  included  it  in  his  very  popular 
collection,  The  Christian  Lyre.  This  was  the  book  the 
lisrht  and  secular  character  of  whose  music  caused  such 

o 

grief  to  the  heart  of  Thomas  Hastings.  Designed  for 
revival  and  social  meetings,  it  found  its  way  into  the 
more  formal  services  of  many  Presbyterian  churches,  as 
a  welcome  substitute  for  the  authorized  psalmody.  It 
cannot  be  said,  however,  that  by  this  means,  or  any 
other,  Mr.  Key’s  hymn  became  generally  familiar  to 
Presbyterians  until  a  much  later  date.  The  Presbyterian 
Hymnal  of  1874  was  the  first  authorized  book  to  contain 
it.  A  peculiar  feature  in  the  long  career  of  this  hymn 
is  that  so  little  music  should  have  been  composed  for  it. 


LORD,  WITH  GLOWING  HEART  I'D  PRAISE  THEE  55 

Even  now  the  words  can  hardly  be  said  to  be  associated 
with  any  particular  tune. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Over  the  grave  of  Francis  Scott  Key,  at  Frederick, 
Maryland,  there  was  placed  in  1898  an  impressive 
monument.  His  figure  in  bronze  stands  on  a  granite 
base.  He  is  represented  at  the  moment  of  discovery 
that  “  our  flag  was  still  there,”  his  right  arm  extended 
toward  it,  and  the  left  waving  aloft  his  hat  in  an  exultant 
salute.  It  is  a  striking  representation  of  the  way  in 
which  Mr.  Key  himself  stands  before  the  minds  of  his 
countrymen.  They  think  of  him  always  as  in  that  atti¬ 
tude.  To  them  he  is  always  the  man  who  wrote  “  The 
Star  Spangled  Banner.”  The  one  hour  outshines  the 
life  so  much  in  men’s  eyes  that  the  life  has  become 
obscure. 

It  is  none  the  less  pleasant  to  know  how  worthy  that 
life  was  before  and  after  its  great  event ;  to  find  the 
home  life  as  attractive  as  the  patriotism,  to  find  the  grace 
of  the  gentleman  and  the  earnestness  of  the  Christian  at 
one  with  the  gifts  of  the  poet. 

No  extended  life  of  Mr.  Key  has  been  published,  but 
it  seems  as  if  (like  that  editor  who  put  the  note  before 
his  hymn)  every  one  who  wrote  of  him  felt  called  upon 
to  praise  him. 

Mr.  Key  was  the  son  of  John  Ross  Key,  a  man  of 
means  and  high  social  position,  and  a  self-sacrificing 
patriot  of  the  Revolution ;  and  was  born  on  his  father’s 
estate,  Terra  Rubra,  Frederick,  Maryland,  on  August 
1st,  1779.  He  was  educated  at  St.  John’s  College, 


56  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Annapolis,  and  in  1802  married  the  representative  of 
another  distinguished  Maryland  family,  Mary  Tayloe 
Lloyd,  whose  ancestral  home,  with  its  wainscotted  draw¬ 
ing-room,  has  stood  in  Annapolis  from  1709  until  now. 

Mr.  Key  practiced  law  in  Frederick  for  some  years, 
afterward  moving  to  Georgetown,  D.  C.  For  three  terms 
he  was  district  attorney  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  As 
a  lawyer  he  seems  not  to  have  been  given  to  severe 
studies,  but  yet  competent,  with  a  ready  mind  full  of 
resources  and  equal  to  the  occasion.  He  had,  too,  more 
than  a  little  of  the  gifts  of  the  orator ;  was  natural  and 
earnest,  and  easily  kindled  into  passion.  In  person  he 
was  slight,  and  of  extraordinary  vigor  both  in  mind  and 
body ;  walking,  when  an  elderly  man,  with  the  light  and 
elastic  gait  of  a  boy,  and  highly  charged  with  electricity 
through  his  whole  system.  He  was  absolutely  fearless, 
ardent,  impulsive,  frank,  outspoken ;  not  without  the 
defects  of  his  qualities.  Not  always  recognized  by  pass¬ 
ing  acquaintances  as  being  all  that  he  was,  and  yet  al¬ 
ways  as  being  a  gentleman.  He  was  cheerful,  and  liked 
social  life  and  hospitalities,  and  excelled  in  bright  conver¬ 
sation.  Of  real  warmth  of  heart,  he  loved  his  friends 
with  great  loyalty  and  his  family  with  tender  devotion. 

Mr.  Key  was  a  member  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  of  the  type  known  as  Evangelical.  He  loved 
his  own  Church,  but  one  who  had  been  his  rector  (Rev. 
John  T.  Brooke)  has  taken  pains  to  record  in  a  Memorial 
Discourse  that  he  “  had  no  sympathy  whatever  with  the 
later  attempts  of  individuals ,  at  different  periods,  to  erect 
high  and  exclusive  fences  upon  the  original  peculiarities 
of  the  church.”  He  was  in  sympathy  with  good  men 
of  every  name,  and  ready  to  worship  and  cooperate 


LORD ,  WITH  GLOWING  HEART  I'D  PRAISE  THEE  57 

with  them.  Though  burdened  with  the  care  of  a  very 
large  family  and  heavy  professional  duties,  he  was  habit¬ 
ually  busy  in  Christian  work  to  a  degree  that  excited  the 
wonder  of  his  pastor.  Ready  to  officiate  as  lay-ieader 
when  needed,  a  fervent  participant  in  social  meetings  for 


prayer,  “  he  found  much  time  to  visit  the  sick,  to  comfort 
the  mourning,  to  confer  with  the  enquiring,  to  warn  the 
careless ;  and  he  stood  ever  ready,  at  a  moment’s  warn¬ 
ing,  to  lift  his  voice  in  behalf  of  any  of  the  great  public 
charities  of  the  day.” 

Mr.  Key  and  his  wife  were  both  slave-holders  by 


58 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


inheritance,  but  deplored  the  existence  of  the  institution 
of  slavery.  Mr.  Key  gave  much  thought  to  his  own 
negroes,  and  regularly  held  Sunday-school  for  them ;  in 
his  neighborhood  he  was  proverbially  the  colored  man’s 
friend,  their  unpaid  advocate  in  the  courts,  their  helper 
in  time  of  trouble.  He  was  among  the  first  to  think  out 
the  scheme  of  African  colonization  as  the  most  hopeful 
remedy  for  a  complicated  situation.  In  connection  with 
his  friend  Bishop  Meade,  he  traveled  much  and  worked 
hard  to  promote  the  cause,  to  which  he  became  ardently 
devoted.  His  income  was  always  carefully  apportioned 
to  provide  a  fund  for  his  charities,  and  among  his  last 
words  were  his  directions  where  to  find  and  how  to 
employ  the  moneys  then  on  hand  for  such  uses. 

“  Good  men  are  great  blessings  to  the  community  ” — 
it  was  so  that  Mr.  Key’s  pastor  began  the  Memorial 
Discourse.  “  But  they  must  die  ” — so  it  continued. 
And  though  a  commonplace,  one  can  understand  how 
hard  it  must  have  been  to  apply  the  phrase  to  one  so 
very  much  alive  as  he.  Mr.  Key  died  in  Baltimore, 
January  nth,  1843.  addition  to  the  monument  over 
his  grave  erected  by  popular  subscription,  a  statue  of 
him  also  stands  in  Golden  Gate  Park,  San  Francisco, 
provided  by  the  will  of  James  Lick,  the  California 
millionaire. 

But  his  song  is  his  monument.  Toward  the  end  of  the 
War  of  1812  he  learned  that  a  friend  and  neighbor  had 
been  taken  from  his  home  by  the  British  forces  and  was 
held  as  a  prisoner  on  board  the  admiral’s  ship.  He  at 
once  determined  to  intercede  for  his  friend’s  release,  and 
secured  from  the  government  such  papers  as  were  neces¬ 
sary  to  his  purpose.  Visiting  the  squadron  of  the  British 


LORD ,  WITH  GLOWHVG  HEART  HD  PRAISE  THEE  59 


on  the  Potomac  under  a  flag  of  truce,  that  summer  day 
in  1814,  he  was  detained  under  guard,  for  an  attack  on 
Baltimore  was  just  about  to  begin.  Anxiously  he  paced 
the  deck  through  the  long  night  of  the  bombardment, 
until  he  caught  the  dawn’s  early  light  on  the  flag  still 
waving  over  Fort  McHenry.  The  attack  had  failed. 
He  was  released  with  the  song  in  his  heart,  and  most  of 
it  roughly  drafted  on  the  back  of  a  letter  before  he 
reached  the  shore.  The  next  day  it  was  printed  on 
handbills,  and  men  were  singing  it,  as  they  have  been 
ever  since. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  The  first  would  seem  to  be  in  regard  to  the  value 
of  the  newly  found  lines, — as  to  whether  they  are  a  leal 
addition  to  the  hymn.  It  will  be  noticed  that  in  the 
second  verse  (keeping  to  the  eight-line  form  of  each 
verse)  the  poet  recites  the  acts  of  divine  love  calculated 
to  raise  the  dull  soul  to  a  rapture  of  gratitude.  But 
that  verse  stops  with  the  appearing  of  the  cioss.  The 
newly  found  verse  (as  the  third)  celebrates  the  Saviour’s 
drawing  the  sinner  to  that  cross,  the  call  of  His  gospel, 
the  gifts  of  His  pardon  and  His  peace.  Do  not  these 
things  add  to  the  grounds  of  praise  ?  Can  they  be 

omitted  without  loss  to  the  hymn  ? 

(2)  We  have  now  three  texts  of  the  hymn  where  we 
had  only  one,  and  the  opportunity,  always  inteiesting,  of 
comparing  them.  They  are  the  text  in  the  magazine, 
that  of  the  autograph,  and  the  usual  text  as  here  piinted. 

The  first  verse  is  precisely  the  same  in  all  three  texts. 

The  second  verse  is  identical  in  the  autograph  copy 
and  in  the  usual  text.  But  we  have  to  choose  between 


6o 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


their  reading  of  the  seventh  line,  “  the  light  of  hope,” 
and  that  of  the  magazine,  “  the  light  of  life.” 

Of  the  newly  found  third  verse  there  are  only  two 
texts.  That  of  the  autograph  copy  is  before  us ;  that 
of  the  magazine  reads  (the  differences  are  italicized) : — 

“  Praise  thy  Saviour  Lord ,  that  drew  thee 
To  that  cross,  new  life  to  give — 

Call'd  a  guilt- stain' d  sinner  to  thee  ! 

Bade  thee  look  to  him  and  live  ! 

“  Praise  the  grace  whose  threats  alarm’d  thee  ! 

Rous’d  thee  from  thy  fatal  ease  ! 

Praise  the  grace  whose  pardon  sav'd  thee  ! 

Praise  the  grace  that  whisper’d  peace  !” 

The  last  verse  in  the  autograph  copy  has  only  one 
word  different  from  the  usual  text  here  printed ;  its  fifth 
line  reading,  “  Let  thy  love  ”  instead  of  “  Let  thy  grace.” 
But  in  the  magazine  the  verse  reads  : — 

“Lord,  this  bosom’s  ardent  feeling, 

Vainly  would  my  tongue  express  ! 

Low  before  thy  foot-stool  kneeling, 

Deign  thy  suppliant’s  prayer  to  bless! 

“  Let  thy  love,  my  heart' s  best  treasure, 

Ever  bind  me  to  thy  ways  ! 

Let  me  ever  seek  thy  pleasure  ! 

Let  me  ever  lisp  thy  praise !” 

If  the  writer  were  to  venture  a  guess  as  to  the  history 
of  the  three  texts  it  would  be  that  the  magazine  has  the 
hymn  as  originally  written ;  that  Mr.  Key  afterward 
saw  that  the  line,  “  Call’d  a  guilt-stain’d  sinner  to  thee !” 
in  the  newly  found  verse,  and  the  lack  of  rhyme  between 
“  alarm’d  thee  ”  and  “  sav’d  thee,”  needed  correction,  and 


LORD ,  WITH  GLOWING  HD  ART  I'D  FRA  LSD  THEE  6 1 

the  close  of  the  hymn  needed  strengthening ;  so  that  he 
changed  the  hymn  to  the  form  seen  in  the  autograph 
copy ;  and  that  the  omission  of  the  third  verse  and  the 
single  change  that  marks  the  usual  text  as  here  printed 
were  made  by  Dr.  Muhlenberg.  If  the  writer  were 
editing  a  hymn  book  to-day  he  should  print  this  hymn 
precisely  as  in  Mr.  Key’s  autograph  copy. 


FROM  GREENLAND’S  ICY  MOUNTAINS 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  From  Greenland’s  icy  mountains, 

From  India’s  coral  strand, 
Where  Afric’s  sunny  fountains 
Roll  down  their  golden  sand, 
From  many  an  ancient  river, 
From  many  a  palmy  plain, 
They  call  us  to  deliver 

Their  land  from  error’s  chain. 

2  What  though  the  spicy  breezes 

Blow  soft  o’er  Ceylon’s  isle  ; 
Though  every  prospect  pleases, 
And  only  man  is  vile  : 

In  vain  with  lavish  kindness 
The  gifts  of  God  are  strown  ; 
The  heathen  in  his  blindness 
Bows  down  to  wood  and  stone. 

3  Can  we,  whose  souls  are  lighted 

With  wisdom  from  on  high, 
Can  we  to  men  benighted 
The  lamp  of  life  deny  ? 
Salvation  !  O  salvation  ! 

The  joyful  sound  proclaim, 

Till  each  remotest  nation 

Has  learned  Messiah’s  Name. 


63 


64 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  Waft,  waft,  ye  winds,  His  story, 

And  you,  ye  waters,  roll, 

Till  like  a  sea  of  glory 

It  spreads  from  pole  to  pole  ; 

Till  o’er  our  ransomed  nature 
The  Lamb  for  sinners  slain, 

Redeemer,  King,  Creator, 

In  bliss  returns  to  reign. 

Rev.  Reginald  Heber,  1819 

NOTE .—The  text  is  that  of  Bishop  Heber’s  manuscript. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

In  February,  1819,  a  royal  letter  was  issued  authorizing 
a  special  offering  for  foreign  missions  in  all  churches  and 
chapels  of  Great  Britain.  Whitsunday  of  that  year  fell 
on  the  30th  of  May,  and  Dr.  Shipley,  dean  of  St.  Asaph, 
appointed  the  morning  of  that  day  for  making  the  offer¬ 
ing  in  the  parish  church  of  Wrexham,  of  which  he  was 
the  vicar.  It  happened  that  he  had  also  arranged  for  a 
course  of  Sunday-evening  lectures  in  his  church  to  begin 
that  same  day.  His  son-in-law,  the  Rev.  Reginald  Heber, 
had  come  to  Wrexham  to  deliver  the  opening  lecture. 

In  those  days  the  singing  of  hymns  was  not  authorized 
in  the  Church  of  England,  but  they  had  pushed  in,  none 
the  less.  Heber  remarks  in  one  of  his  letters  that 
“  hardly  a  collection  is  made  for  charitable  purposes 
without  a  hymn  for  the  occasion.”  But  missionary 
hymns  were  not  then  so  numerous  as  now,  and  the  vicar 
seems  to  have  been  at  a  loss  for  one  to  sing  in  connection 
with  the  next  day’s  collection.  Yet  he  had  a  poet  for  a 
son-in-law,  and  the  son-in-law  was  in  the  house ;  and  it 
occurred  to  him  that  a  new  hymn  might  be  secured  for 
the  occasion.  For  our  knowledge  of  just  what  happened 


FROM  GREENLAND' S  ICY  MOUNTAINS  65 


we  are  dependent  upon  a  printed  statement  of  Thomas 
Edgworth,  a  solicitor  of  Wrexham.  “  In  the  course  of 
the  Saturday  previous,”  Mr.  Edgworth  says,  “  the  dean 
and  his  son-in-law  being  together  in  the  vicarage,  the 
former  requested  Heber  to  ‘  write  something  for  them  to 
sing  in  the  morning  ’ ;  and  he  retired  for  that  purpose^ 
from  the  table  where  the  dean  and  a  few  friends  were 
sitting,  to  a  distant  part  of  the  room.  In  a  short  time 

y. ...  _ /i  ^  jt  ~~ 


5 


AUTOGRAPH  VERSES  OF  THE  HYMN 


66 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  IIYMNS 


“the  dean  inquired,  ‘What  have  you  written?  Hebei, 
having  then  composed  the  first  three  verses,  lead  them 
over.  ‘There,  there,  that  will  do  very  well,’  said  the 
dean.  ‘  No,  no,  the  sense  is  not  complete,’  replied  He- 
ber.  Accordingly  he  added  the  fourth  verse,  and  the 
dean  being  inexorable  to  his  repeated  request  of  Let 
me  add  another,  O  let  me  add  another,  thus  completed 
the  hymn  .  .  .  which  has  since  become  so  celebiated. 
It  was  sung  the  next  morning  in  Wrexham  Church,  the 
first  time.”  Tradition  says  it  was  sung  to  the  old  ballad 
tune,  “  ’Twas  when  the  Seas  were  Roaring. 

The  hymn  had  been  set  up  and  printed  that  Saturday 
evening,  to  be  ready  for  the  use  of  the  congiegation. 
The  original  manuscript  which  served  as  “  copy  ”  was 
happily  preserved,  bearing  the  scar  made  by  the  copy- 
hook  on  which  it  had  been  impaled.  It  was  exhibited 
in  1851  at  the  World’s  Exhibition  in  London.  It  passed 
into  the  possession  of  Dr.  Thomas  Raffles,  of  Liverpool, 
at  one  time  a  hymn  writer  of  some  reputation,  and  also 
an  enthusiastic  collector  of  autographs.  When  his  col¬ 
lection  came  to  be  sold,  it  excited  much  competition, 
and  brought  forty-two  pounds, — a  larger  sum  than  the 
amount  of  that  missionary  collection  at  Wrexham 
Church. 

Heber’s  hymn  made,  its  way  quickly.  Just  after  his 
appointment  as  Bishop  of  Calcutta  brought  him  into 
general  notice,  a  correspondent  sent  to  The  Christian 
Observer  a  copy  of  the  hymn  with  a  letter  calling  atten¬ 
tion  to  it  as  written  by  the  new  bishop.  The  hymn  and 
letter  appeared  in  the  number  for  February,  1823,  and  as 
an  edition  of  the  magazine  was  reprinted  in  the  United 
States,  it  made  the  hymn  known  in  both  countries,  On 


FROM  GREENLAND'S  ICY  MOUNTAINS  67 


that  account  the  letter  is  worth  reproducing  here.  It  is 
hardly  less  interesting  on  its  own  account  as  a  perfect 
specimen  of  that  still  familiar  type  of  appreciation  which 
is  no  less  self-conscious  than  it  is  generous,  and  also  of 
a  rhetoric  as  stilted  as  the  patronage. 

“  To  the  Editor  of  the  Christian  Observer. 

“The  following  missionary  hymn  is  so  beautiful,  considered 
as  poetry,  and  so  honourable  as  the  effusion  of  a  Christian 
mind,  that  I  should  request  its  insertion  in  your  pages,  even 
if  it  were  not  the  production  of  a  writer  whose  devout  and 
elevated  muse  justly  obtained  your  labours  [referring  to  an 
earlier  review  of  Heber’s  Palestine \ ;  whose  name  has  since 
been  often  mentioned  in  your  pages  with  high  respect ;  and 
whose  appointment,  to  a  most  important  station  in  the  church 
of  Christ,  you  have  recently  announced  with  a  pleasure  which 
is  shared  by  all  who  have  at  heart  the  moral  and  spiritual  wel¬ 
fare  of  our  numerous  fellow-subjects,  native  and  European,  in 
the  East.  The  hymn  having  appeared  some  time  since  in 
print  with  the  name  of  Reginald  Heber  annexed,  I  can  feel 
no  scruple  in  annexing  that  name  to  it  on  the  present  occa¬ 
sion.  There  is  nothing,  either  in  the  sentiments  or  the  poetry, 
but  what  does  honour  to  the  now  Right  Reverend  prelate, 
while  it  must  delight  every  Christian  mind  to  witness  such 
devout  ardour  for  the  extension  of  ‘Messiah’s  Name,’  in  a 
station  so  eminently  important  for  giving  effect  to  that  desire 
in  all  those  measures  which  Christian  piety,  meekness,  and 
prudence  may  suggest.  J.” 

The  best  service  performed  by  this  euphonious  patron 
lay  in  the  fact  that  his  letter  brought  the  hymn  to  the 
attention  of  Miss  Mary  W.  Howard,  of  Savannah, 
Georgia.  She  saw  the  possibilities  of  Bishop  Heber’s 


68  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

hymn,  but  knew  of  no  suitable  tune  that  would  carry 
the  words,  written  as  they  were  in  a  metre  not  then  much 
used  in  hymns.  Lowell  Mason  was  at  the  time  a  bank 
clerk  in  the  same  town ;  but  he  had  already  begun  the 
musical  career  which  was  to  bring  him  fame  and  do  so 
much  for  congregational  singing.  Boston  was  destined 
to  be  the  scene  of  his  more  conspicuous  labors,  but 
already  in  Savannah  he  was  teaching  a  singing-school 
and  leading  a  choir,  and  the  year  before  he  had  published 
the  pioneer  of  his  long  line  of  tune  books.  To  him 
Miss  Howard  brought  the  words  of  this  hymn,  and  he 
wrote  for  it  his  now  famous  tune,  Missionary  Hymn,  and 
printed  it  as  sheet  music,  with  the  legend,  “  Composed 
for  and  Dedicated  to  Miss  Mary  W.  Howard,  of  Savannah, 
Georgia.”  The  effect  of  Mason  s  tune  has  been  to  make 
“  From  Greenland’s  Icy  Mountains  ”  the  inevitable  hymn 
for  all  missionary  occasions  in  this  country ;  and  in  Eng¬ 
land,  even  to  this  day,  the  tune  is  frequently  heard  in 
churches  where  music  of  the  severer  type  known  as 
Anglican  has  come  to  prevail. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

When  Thackeray,  in  his  Four  Georges ,  had  grown 
weary  of  flinging  his  darts  at  the  padded  figuie  of  the 
First  Gentleman  of  Europe,  he  turned  to  “tell  of  better 
gentlemen  ’’  of  the  reign  of  George  IV. ;  among  others 
of  “  the  good  divine,  Reginald  Heber,  as  one  of  the  best 
of  English  gentlemen —the  charming  poet,  the  happy 
possessor  of  all  sorts  of  gifts  and  accomplishments,  bnth, 
wit,  fame,  high  character,  competence.” 

Reginald  Heber  was  born  April  2ist,  1783,  at  Malpas, 
of  which  parish  his  father  was  rector.  He  wrote  verses 


FR OM  GREENLAND  ' S  ICY  MO UNTA INS  69 

from  childhood,  and  in  1800,  his  first  year  at  Oxford, 
gained  a  prize  for  the  best  Latin  verse.  Three  years 
later,  he  won  the  Newdigate  prize  by  his  “  Palestine,” 
one  of  the  few  college  prize  poems  that  have  taken  a 


place  in  literature.  Sir  Walter  Scott  wrote  in  his 
Journal,  March  12th,  1829:  “Read  Reginald  Heber’s 
journal  after  dinner.  I  spent  some  merry  days  with 
him  at  Oxford  when  he  was  writing  his  prize  poem.  He 


70 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  was  then  a  gay  young  fellow,  a  wit  and  a  satirist,  and 
burning  for  literary  fame.  My  laurels  were  beginning  to 
bloom,  and  we  were  both  madcaps.  Who  would  have 
foretold  our  future  lot?” 

In  1804  Heber  took  his  degree,  spending  two  years  in 
travel  on  the  Continent.  Ordained  in  1807,  he  was  pre¬ 
sented  by  his  brother  with  the  family  living  of  Hodnet. 
He  soon  married,  and  for  sixteen  years  remained  the 
faithful  friend  of  his  people  in  what  he  called  a  halfway 
situation  between  a  parson  and  a  squire.  Of  the  beauti¬ 
ful  home-life  at  Hodnet  rectory,  and  the  pain  of  break¬ 
ing  it  up  when  the  call  to  India  came,  we  catch  some 
glimpses  in  the  second  chapter  of  Augustus  Hare’s 
Memorials  of  a  Quiet  Life.  Always  faithful  to  parish 
duties,  Heber  was  ardently  devoted  to  literary  pursuits. 
Besides  his  poems,  he  did  much  editorial  work,  and  was 
one  of  the  original  staff  of  writers  on  the  famous  Quar¬ 
terly  Reviezv.  He  wrote  also  a  life  of  Jeremy  Taylor, 
and  edited  an  edition  of  Taylor’s  Complete  Works 
which  is  still  the  best.  He  held,  too,  a  place  of  his  own 
in  the  literary  society  of  the  time.  But  his  literary 
career  came  to  an  end  with  his  call  to  India  when  he 
was  only  forty  years  of  age. 

While  at  Hodnet  many  honors  came  to  him,  for  all 
men  admired  him.  While  still  a  young  man  he  was  the 
Bampton  lecturer  at  Oxford,  and  in  1822  was  elected 
preacher  of  Lincoln’s  Inn,  London.  When  forty  years 
old  he  was  offered  the  appointment  of  Bishop  of  Cal¬ 
cutta.  Twice  he  refused  for  the  sake  of  wife  and  child ; 
but  he  had  much  of  the  missionary  spirit  and  an  especial 
fondness  for  India,  and  he  finally  accepted  the  call  as 
from  God.  On  June  16th,  1823,  he  sailed  for  the  new 


FROM  GREENLAND' S  ICY  MOUNTAINS 


7 1 


home,  and  never  again  was  to  see  the  old.  He  began 
at  once  the  visitation  of  his  vast  diocese,  which  included 
all  India,  Ceylon,  the  Mauritius,  and  Australasia.  His 
abilities  and  enthusiastic  labors  made  a  great  mark  upon 
the  diocese,  but  his  administration  was  very  brief. 
Returning  from  a  service  at  Trichinopoly,  on  April  3rd, 
1826,  he  retired  to  take  a  cold  bath,  and  half  an  hour 
afterward  was  found  dead  in  his  room  by  a  servant. 

In  politics  Bishop  Heber  was  a  Tory,  in  theology  an 
Arminian,  in  religious  views  a  High  Churchman.  But 
all  his  opinions  were  subject  to  the  law  of  charity.  He 
entered  into  no  controversy,  and  was  warmly  loved  for 
his  beautiful  character,  his  religious  enthusiasm,  and  his 
engaging  ways. 

His  attention  was  turned  to  hymn  writing  by  the 
unsatisfactory  state  of  psalmody  in  the  Church  of  Kng- 
land.  Clergy  and  people  had  w'caried  of  metrical  psalm 
versions,  and  although  hymns  had  never  been  authoi- 
ized,  insisted  on  using  them  in  church.  Heber  was 
ambitious  to  write  hymns  that  should  win  the  sanction 
of  the  authorities  and  make  part  of  an  authorized 
hymnal.  But  the  authorities  counseled  delay,  and  his 
hymn  book  was  first  published  by  his  widow  in  1827,  as 
“  Hymns  Written  and  Adapted  to  the  Weekly  Church 
Service  of  the  Year.”  It  contained  fifty-seven  of  Hebei  s 
hymns.  A  considerable  number  of  these  had  been 
printed  by  him  in  The  Christian  Observer  between  the 
years  1811  and  1816.  Most  of  the  others  first  saw  the 
light  when  his  hymn  book  came  to  be  printed.  To  this 
hymn  book  there  will  be  occasion  to  recur  in  studying 
a  hymn  of  Dean  Milman.  Heber  is  perhaps  the  only 
extensive  hymn  writer  in  the  language  of  whom  it  may 


72 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


be  said  that  every  hymn  he  wrote  has  come  into  actual 
use. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  What  did  the  author  mean  when  he  insisted  on 
writing  a  fourth  verse  because  the  sense  was  not  com¬ 
plete  without  it;  just  what,  in  other  words,  does  that 
verse  add  to  the  structure  or  thought  of  the  hymn  ? 

(2)  In  The  Hymnal  (and  here)  the  hymn  is  printed  as 
originally  written.  Bishop  Heber’s  allusion  in  the  second 
verse  to  the  spicy  breezes  from  Ceylon  is  both  explained 
and  illustrated  by  a  passage  in  his  Journal  of  a  Voyage 
to  India ,  where,  under  the  date  of  September,  1823,  he 
writes  :  “  Though  we  were  now  too  far  off  Ceylon  to 
catch  the  odors  of  the  land,  yet  it  is,  we  are  assured,  per¬ 
fectly  true  that  such  odors  are  perceptible  to  a  very  con¬ 
siderable  distance.  In  the  Straits  of  Malacca  a  smell 
like  that  of  a  hawthorn  hedge  is  commonly  experienced  ; 
and  from  Ceylon,  at  thirty  or  forty  miles,  under  certain 
circumstances,  a  yet  more  agreeable  scent  is  inhaled.” 
In  spite,  however,  of  Bishop  Heber’s  confirmation  of  the 
appropriateness  of  his  earlier  allusion  to  Ceylon,  it 
remains  true  that  when  his  hymns  came  to  be  printed  in 
1827  by  his  widow,  the  passage  in  question  was  made  to 
read  : — 

“  What  though  the  spicy  breezes 
Blow  soft  o’er  Java’s  isle  — 


No  explanation  of  the  change  has  ever  been  made. 

In  many  hymn  books  the  word  “  each  ”  in  the  seventh 
line  of  the  third  verse  is  changed  to  “  earth’s.”  Is  there 
any  good  reason  for  either  change  ? 


FR OM  G RE ENL AND' S  ICY  MO UNTA INS 


7  3 


(3)  The  non-Christian  religions  are  now  regarded  with 
a  more  sympathetic  feeling  than  in  Bishop  Heber’s  time. 
Has  the  growth  of  this  feeling  had  any  effect  upon  our 
estimate  of  the  appropriateness  and  usefulness  of  this 
hymn  ?  Compare  it  in  this  respect  with  Bishop  Coxe’s 
missionary  hymn,  “  Saviour,  Sprinkle  Many  Nations  ” 
( The  Hymnal ,  No.  399). 

(4)  Bishop  Heber  lived  at  a  time  when  English  lyrical 
poetry  had  a  great  development  under  Walter  Scott, 
Byron,  and  others.  His  aim  in  writing  hymns  was  to 
get  something  of  this  new  lyrical  grace  and  charm  into 
the  hymns  of  the  Church.  Of  his  original  hymns  there 
are  nine  in  The  Hymnal  (see  its  Index  of  Authors).  Do 
they  show  that  he  succeeded  in  his  purpose  ?  One  of 
them  Lord  Tennyson  thought  the  greatest  hymn  in  the 
language.  In  the  opinion  of  others  Heber’s  style  was 
somewhat  too  ornate  and  flowing  for  hymn  writing. 

(5)  The  hymns  of  the  Church  may  be  called  the 
flowers  of  the  Church’s  history.  The  hymns  of  any 
epoch  grow  out  of  the  spiritual  life  of  that  epoch,  and 
express  its  best  thought  and  feeling.  Of  this  Bishop 
Heber’s  hymn  is  an  example.  The  hymn  itself  is  the 
outgrowth  of  that  missionary  movement  in  England 
whose  influences  had  surrounded  him  while  growing  up. 
The  movement  arose  with  the  beginning  of  the  nine¬ 
teenth  century.  The  Baptist  Missionary  Society  was 
founded  in  1792,  the  London  Missionary  Society  in 
1 795  >*  within  the  Church  of  England  an  active  Society 
for  Missions  to  Africa  was  started  in  1799,  and  the 
Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  began  a  new 
career  with  the  new  century.  It  was  only  in  1813  that 
the  obstacles  to  missionary  work  in  Heber’s  beloved  India 


74 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


were  overcome  and  the  way  declared  open  by  Parlia¬ 
ment.  The  aroused  conscience  and  quickened  pulse  of 
England  have  a  witness  in  this  and  other  hymns  of  the 
time.  And  is  it  not  somewhat  surprising  that  the  increased 
missionary  enthusiasm  of  the  latter  pait  of  the  centuiy 
did  not  more  freely  embody  itself  in  hymns  that  should 
gain  the  ear  and  heart  of  the  Church?  The  new  mis¬ 
sionary  literature  has  attained  great  proportions,  but  in 
it  all  hymnody  plays  a  rather  inconspicuous  part.  Yet 
there  would  seem  to  be  room  in  our  hymnals  for  fresh 
missionary  hymns;  and  without  increasing  the  size  of 
the  books,  from  which,  one  would  think,  some  few  of  the 
more  prosaic  hymns  on  that  theme  might  go  without 
serious  loss. 


VII 


MY  FAITH  LOOKS  UP  TO  THEE 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

i  My  faith  looks  up  to  Thee, 
Thou  Lamb  of  Calvary, 
Saviour  Divine : 

Now  hear  me  while  I  pray, 
Take  all  my  guilt  away, 

O  let  me  from  this  day 
Be  wholly  Thine. 


2  May  Thy  rich  grace  impart 
Strength  to  my  fainting  heart, 
My  zeal  inspire  ; 

As  Thou  hast  died  for  me, 

O  may  my  love  to  Thee 
Pure,  warm,  and  changeless  be, 
A  living  fire. 


3  While  life’s  dark  maze  I  tread, 
And  griefs  around  me  spread, 
Be  Thou  my  Guide ; 

Bid  darkness  turn  to  day, 

Wipe  sorrow’s  tears  away, 

Nor  let  me  ever  stray 
From  Thee  aside. 


75 


76 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  When  ends  life’s  transient  dream, 

When  death’s  cold,  sullen  stream 
Shall  o’er  me  roll, 

Blest  Saviour,  then,  in  love, 

Fear  and  distrust  remove  ; 

O  bear  me  safe  above, 

A  ransomed  soul. 

Ray  Palmer,  1830 

NOTE. — The  text  is  taken  from  his  Hymns  and  Sacred  Pieces ,  1865.  As 
regards  a  different  reading  in  the  original  printing  of  the  hymn, 
see  under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion,  (3). 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

“  Look  in  thy  heart,  and  write,”  said  the  muse  to  Sir 
Philip  Sidney  :  and  no  language  could  reveal  more  clearly 
the  source  of  this  hymn.  Its  words  “  were  born  of  my 
own  soul,”  the  author  said  long  afterward,  to  Dr.  Cuyler. 
It  becomes  at  once  evident,  therefore,  that  we  must  be 
altogether  dependent  upon  such  disclosures  as  the  author 
chose  to  make  for  any  real  knowledge  of  the  origin  of 
the  hymn.  Happily  for  us  the  publication  of  inaccurate 
and  apocryphal  accounts  of  the  matter  (already  alluded 
to  in  the  preface  to  this  book),  together  with  a  wish  to 
escape  from  “  the  necessity  of  replying  to  letters  of 
inquiry  which  have  been  received  in  inconvenient  num¬ 
bers,”  led  Dr.  Palmer  (in  an  appendix  to  his  Poetical 
Works ,  1876)  to  narrate  the  circumstances  and  experience 
out  of  which  the  hymn  arose  : 

“  Immediately  after  graduating  at  Yale  College,  in 
September,  1830,  the  writer  went  to  the  city  of  New 
York,  by  previous  engagement,  to  spend  a  year  in  teach¬ 
ing  for  two  or  three  hours  each  day  in  a  select  school 
for  young  ladies.  This  private  institution,  which  was 
patronized  by  the  best  class  of  families,  was  under  the 


MY  FAITH  LOOKS  UP  TO  THEE 


77 


“  direction  of  an  excellent  Christian  lady  connected  with 
St.  George’s  Church,  the  rector  of  which  was  then  the 
good  Dr.  James  Milnor.  It  was  in  Fulton  Street,  west 
of  Broadway,  and  a  little  below  Church  Street  on  the 
south  side  of  the  way.  That  whole  section  of  the  city, 
now  covered  with  immense  stores  and  crowded  with 
business,  was  then  occupied  by  genteel  residences.  The 
writer  resided  in  the  family  of  the  lady  who  kept  the 
school,  and  it  was  there  that  the  hymn  was  written. 

“  It  had  no  external  occasion  whatever.  Having  been 
accustomed  almost  from  childhood,  through  an  inherited 
propensity  perhaps,  to  the  occasional  expression  of  what 
his  heart  felt  in  the  form  of  verse,  it  was  in  accordance 
with  this  habit,  and  in  an  hour  when  Christ,  in  the  riches 
of  His  grace  and  love,  was  so  vividly  apprehended  as  to 
fill  the  soul  with  deep  emotion,  that  the  piece  was  com¬ 
posed.  There  was  not  the  slightest  thought  of  writing 
for  another  eye,  least  of  all  of  writing  a  hymn  for  Chris¬ 
tian  worship.  Away  from  outward  excitement,  in  the 
quiet  of  his  chamber,  and  with  a  deep  consciousness  of 
his  own  needs,  the  writer  transferred  as  faithfully  as  he 
could  to  paper  what  at  the  time  was  passing  within  him. 
Six  stanzas  were  composed,  and  imperfectly  written,  first 
on  a  loose  sheet,  and  then  accurately  copied  into  a  small 
morocco-covered  book,  which  for  such  purposes  the 
author  was  accustomed  to  carry  in  his  pocket.  This 
first  complete  copy  is  still — 1875 — preserved.  It  is  well 
remembered  that  when  writing  the  last  line,  ‘  A  ransomed 
soul,’  the  thought  that  the  whole  work  of  redemption 
and  salvation  was  involved  in  those  words,  and  suggested 
the  theme  of  eternal  praises,  moved  the  writer  to  a  degree 
of  emotion  that  brought  abundant  tears, 


78 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  A  year  or  two  after  the  hymn  was  written,  and  when 
no  one,  so  far  as  can  be  recollected,  had  ever  seen  it,  Dr. 
Lowell  Mason  met  the  author  in  the  street  in  Boston, 
and  requested  him  to  furnish  some  hymns  for  a  Hymn 
and  Tune  Book  which,  in  connection  with  Dr.  Hastings 
of  New  York,  he  was  about  to  publish.  The  little  book 
containing  it  was  shown  him,  and  he  asked  a  copy.  We 
stepped  into  a  store  together,  and  a  copy  was  made  and 
given  him,  which  without  much  notice  he  put  in  his 
pocket.  On  sitting  down  at  home  and  looking  it  over, 
he  became  so  much  interested  in  it  that  he  wrote  for  it 
the  tune  ‘  Olivet,’  in  which  it  has  almost  universally  been 
sung.  Two  or  three  days  afterward  we  met  again  in  the 
street,  when,  scarcely  waiting  to  salute  the  writer,  he 
earnestly  exclaimed,  ‘  Mr.  Palmer,  you  may  live  many 
years  and  do  many  good  things,  but  I  think  you  will  be 
best  known  to  posterity  as  the  author  of  “  My  Faith 
Looks  Up  to  Thee.” 

The  hymn  and  tune  book  referred  to  by  Dr.  Palmer, 
in  which  the  hymn  first  appeared,  came  out  in  twelve 
parts  in  1831-32,  and  was  called  Spiritual  Songs  for 
Social  Worship.  Numerous  editions  of  the  book  were 
printed ;  before  long  the  hymn  and  its  tune  became 
widely  sung  and  began  to  be  copied  into  other  books. 
In  1842  it  was  introduced  into  England  through  the 
Rev.  Andrew  Reed’s  Hymn  Book.  The  hymn  is  to-day 
among  those  most  familiar  in  evangelical  churches  of 
both  countries.  The  statement  often  made  that  it  now 
appears  in  every  hymn  book  is,  of  course,  not  true. 
That  is  not  true  of  any  hymn.  But  it  is  as  well  known 
and  as  well  loved  as  any  American  hymn.  It  seems  to 
many  people  like  a  part  of  their  own  spiritual  life. 


ft 


A?  ^^/f~  e_ 


^H-i^/c  M^^/3  -*VJ-  h/. 
Crfa~e^C  /Vz_<^fe? 


"j/>L^C, 


AN  AUTOGRAPH  VERSE 


8o 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Ray  Palmer  was  the  son  of  the  Hon.  Thomas  Palmer 
of  Little  Compton,  Rhode  Island,  and  was  born  at  that 
place  on  November  12th,  1808.  In  his  thirteenth  year 
he  became  clerk  in  a  dry-goods  store  at  Boston,  and 
while  there  he  connected  himself  with  the  Park  Street 
Church.  His  thoughts  turned  toward  the  ministry,  and 
he  spent  three  years  preparing  for  college  at  Phillips 
Academy,  Andover,  and  in  1830  was  graduated  from 
Yale.  Then  came  the  years  of  teaching  and  of  prepara¬ 
tion  for  the  ministry,  first  at  New  York  and  afterward  at 
New  Haven.  He  was  ordained  in  1835,  becoming  pastor 
of  the  Central  Congregational  Church  of  Bath,  Maine, 
where  he  remained  until  1850.  From  then  until  1866  he 
was  pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church  of  Albany, 
New  York.  In  1866  he  became  the  Corresponding 
Secretary  of  the  American  Congregational  Union,  re¬ 
moving  to  New  York  City,  and  holding  that  laborious 
post  until  1878.  He  resigned  his  secretaryship  in  that 
year  and  had  already  removed  to  Newark,  New  Jersey. 

The  real  occasion  of  this  resignation  was  the  failure 
of  Dr.  Palmer’s  health.  He  suffered  from  a  nervous 
affection  causing  an  uncertainty,  at  times  even  a  stagger, 
in  his  walk.  But  for  some  years  after  giving  up  his 
work  in  New  York  he  continued  in  active  service  in 
connection  with  the  Belleville  Avenue  Congregational 
Church,  of  Newark.  By  a  unique  arrangement  Dr. 
Palmer  became  its  “  pastor,”  having  especial  charge  of 
visiting  the  people ;  while  Dr.  George  H.  Hepworth  was 
its  “preacher,”  and  Dr.  William  Hayes  Ward  its  “super¬ 
intendent  of  mission  work,”  At  Newark,  in  1882,  Dr, 


MY  FAITH  LOOKS  UP  TO  THEE 


8 1 


Palmer  gathered  about  him  a  distinguished  and  affec¬ 
tionate  company  to  celebrate  the  golden  anniversary 
of  his  wedding  to  Miss  Ann  M.  Ward,  of  New  York. 
But  the  warning  of  his  approaching  end  soon  followed. 
He  died  at  Newark  on  March  29th,  1887. 

Dr.  Palmer  was  the  author  of  a  number  of  books. 
His  prose  writings  were  generally  of  a  devotional  char¬ 
acter,  but  included  Hints  on  the  Formation  of  Religions 
Opinions  (i860),  of  which  several  editions  were  printed. 
His  hymns  and  other  verse  appeared  in  successive 
volumes:  Hymns  and  Sacred  Pieces  (1865),  Hymns  of 
My  Holy  Hours  (1868),  Home ,  or  the  Unlost  Paradise 
(1868),  Complete  Poetical  Works  (1876),  and  Voices  of 
Hope  and  Gladness  (1881).  Dr.  Palmer’s  poetical  work 
was  voluminous  enough  to  fill  an  8vo  volume  of  more 
than  three  hundred  and  fifty  pages.  It  is  always  pure 
and  often  graceful,  and  written  in  easily  flowing  verse, 
but  the  body  of  his  miscellaneous  poetry  does  not  attain 
such  elevation  of  thought  or  distinction  of  form  as  would 
recommend  it  to  the  student  of  literature. 

In  estimating  his  poetry  it  is  only  fair  to  remember 
that  Dr.  Palmer’s  life  “  for  more  than  forty  years  was 
unremittingly  devoted  to  the  absorbing  duties  of  a  Chris¬ 
tian  minister,  and  for  more  than  three-fourths  of  this 
period  to  the  manifold  labors  of  a  city  Pastor.  Poetry, 
instead  of  filling  any  prominent  place  in  the  programme 
of  his  life,  has  been  only  the  occupation  of  the  few  occa¬ 
sional  moments  that  could  be  redeemed  from  severer, 
and  generally  very  prosaic,  forms  of  work.” 

When  we  turn  from  the  miscellaneous  poetry  to  the 
hymns,  we  have  a  different  situation  and  a  happier  result. 
There  was  nothing  in  Dr.  Palmer’s  circumstances  to 
6 


82  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

interfere  with  the  production  of  hymns.  They  were 
quite  in  line  with  his  thought  and  work.  And  the 
hymn-form  furnished  precisely  the  medium  through 
which  his  purely  devotional  spirit  and  gift  for  graceful 
verse  could  find  their  most  spontaneous  expiession.  It  is 
among  the  hymn  writers  that  Dr.  Palmei  finds  his  piopei 
place,  and  by  many  he  is  considered  to  be  the  foremost 
hymn  writer  of  America.  He  is  distinguished  not  only 
for  the  excellence  of  his  best  hymns,  but  for  the  numbei 
of  his  hymns  that  are  in  all  ways  good.  And  to  them 
must  he  added  his  translations  of  Latin  hymns,  in  which 
he  was  especially  successful.  Several  of  his  hymns  are 
favorites;  and  yet  what  Lowell  Mason  prophesied  has 
come  to  pass,  and  Dr.  Palmer  is  best  known  as  the 
author  of  “  My  Faith  Looks  Up  to  Thee.” 

Dr.  Palmer’s  character  corresponded  to  his  hymns. 
One  who  knew  him  well  has  recently  spoken  of  him  to 
the  present  writer  as  “  One  of  the  loveliest  of  men. 
He  was  exceedingly  agreeable  in  conversation,  which 
had  always  a  spiritual  tone,”  the  same  friend  went  on  to 
say.  “  There  was  a  certain  saintliness  in  his  manner  and 
personality.  He  was  gentle  in  his  ways  of  speech,  but 
had  very  deep  feelings,  which  often  came  to  the  surface 
in  conversation.  His  religious  character  was  never 
better  illustrated  than  when  he  was  drawn  out  to  speak 
of  his  famous  hymn  :  the  usual  egotism  of  an  author 
was  so  overcome  by  a  feeling  of  simple  gratitude  for 
what  the  hymn  had  accomplished.” 

Dr.  Palmer’s  portrait  illustrates  the  description  of  his 
personal  appearance  given  by  his  friend  Dr.  Theodore 
Cuyler  (in  Recollections  of  a  Long  Life) :  “  He  was  short 
in  stature,  but  his  erect  form  and  habit  of  brushing 


MY  FAITH  LOOKS  UP  TO  THEE 


83 


DR.  RAY  PALMER 

“  his  hair  high  over  his  forehead  gave  him  a  command¬ 
ing  look.  He  was  the  impersonation  of  genuine  en¬ 
thusiasm.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  In  the  story  of  the  hymn  the  point  that  appeals 
to  the  imagination  is  the  carrying  for  so  long  in  the 
young  man’s  pocket  of  that  single  copy,  unknown,  un¬ 
read,  of  the  hymn  now  so  familiar.  Almost  as  appealing 
is  the  record  of  another  copy  of  the  hymn  that  came  to 
Dr.  Palmer’s  knowledge.  It  was  made  in  camp  the 
evening  before  one  of  the  great  battles  of  the  Civil  War. 
Six  or  eight  young  Christian  soldiers  had  met  for  prayer 
in  one  of  the  tents.  They  could  not  all  expect  to  sur¬ 
vive  the  battle.  One  suggested  that  they  draw  up  a 
paper  expressive  of  the  spirit  in  which  they  faced  death, 


84  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

and  that  all  sign  it  for  a  testimony  to  the  friends  of  such 
as  should  fall.  Talking  over  the  form  of  the  paper,  it  was 
agreed  that  the  hymn  “  My  Faith  Looks  Up  to  Thee 
be  written  out  in  full ;  and  to  this  each  one  of  them 
sio-ned  his  name.  What  caused  this  particular  hymn  to 
be  chosen  for  such  a  purpose?  and  just  what  message 
did  that  paper  bring  to  the  relatives  of  those  that  fell  in 
battle  the  next  day  ? 

(2)  Dr.  Palmer  explained  the  success  of  his  hymn  by 
saying  that  it  embodied  “  in  appropriate  and  simple 
language  that  which  is  most  central  in  all  true  Christian 
experience — the  act  of  faith  in  the  divine  Redeemer — the 
intrusting  of  the  individual  soul  to  Him  entirely  and 
for  ever.”  But  this  explanation  would  apply  just  as  well 
to  a  prose  statement  as  to  a  hymn.  Must  there  not  be 
poetic  feeling  as  well  as  spiritual  truth  in  a  good  hymn  ? 
What  are  the  special  poetic  merits  of  this  hymn  ? 

(3)  The  hymn  has  seldom  suffered  from  alterations  at 
the  hands  of  editors.  Dr.  Palmer  complained  of  a  com¬ 
piler  who  substituted  “  distress  ”  for  “  distrust,”  in  the 
last  verse.  He  much  preferred  “  distrust,”  as  applying 
more  to  the  soul,  to  “distress,”  as  suggesting  bodily 
sensations.  But  what  he  seems  to  have  forgotten  is 
that  the  word  was  originally  printed  “  distress  ”  when 
the  hymn  first  appeared  in  Dr.  Mason’s  hymn  book  ; 
being  changed  to  “  distrust  ”  only  in  the  later  editions. 
It  would  be  interesting  to  examine  the  small  morocco- 
covered  book  to  see  what  word  was  originally  wntten. 
But  is  there  any  question  that  Dr.  Palmer  was  right  in 
insisting  on  “distrust”?  Notice  his  choice  of  words 
throughout.  Could  the  hymn  be  improved  by  substi¬ 
tuting  others  at  any  point? 


VIII 


LEAD,  KINDLY  LIGHT,  AMID  THE  ENCIRCLING 

GLOOM 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  Lead,  kindly  Light,  amid  the  encircling  gloom, 

Lead  Thou  me  on  ; 

The  night  is  dark,  and  I  am  far  from  home ; 

Lead  Thou  me  on: 

Keep  Thou  my  feet ;  I  do  not  ask  to  see 
The  distant  scene, — one  step  enough  for  me. 

2  I  was  not  ever  thus,  nor  prayed  that  Thou 

Shouldst  lead  me  on ; 

I  loved  to  choose  and  see  my  path  ;  but  now 
Lead  Thou  me  on. 

I  loved  the  garish  day,  and,  spite  of  fears, 

Pride  ruled  my  will:  remember  not  past  years. 

3  So  long  Thy  power  hath  blest  me,  sure  it  still 

Will  lead  me  on 

O’er  moor  and  fen,  o’er  crag  and  torrent,  till 
The  night  is  gone  ; 

And  with  the  morn  those  angel  faces  smile, 

Which  I  have  loved  long  since,  and  lost  awhile. 

Rev.  (afterward  Cardinal)  John  Henry  Newman,  1833 

Note. — The  text  is  taken  from  Newman’s  Verses  on  Various  Occasions, 
1867  ;  and  agrees  with  that  in  Lyra  Apostolica. 


85 


86 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

This  much-loved  hymn  is  always  spoken  of  as  having 
been  written  by  Cardinal  Newman,  and  the  fact  that 
Protestants  love  to  sing  it  is  used  to  show  the  real  unity 
of  Christians,  whether  Roman  Catholic  or  Protestant. 
But  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  hymn  was  not  written  by 
Cardinal  Newman,  nor  even  by  a  Roman  Catholic.  It 
was  written  by  the  Rev.  John  Henry  Newman,  a  young 
clergyman  of  the  Church  of  England,  twelve  years 
before  he  went  into  the  Church  of  Rome ;  and  at  a  time 
when,  as  he  himself  tells  us,  he  had  no  thought  of  leav¬ 
ing  the  Church  of  England.  Indeed,  Cardinal  Newman 
said  in  1882  to  Lord  Ronald  Gower  (who  reports  it  in 
his  Old  Diaries)  that  the  hymn  did  not  represent  his 
feeling  at  that  time.  “  For  we  Catholics  ”  he  said,  with 
a  quiet  smile,  “  believe  we  have  found  the  light. 

The  hymn  is  so  much  a  part  of  its  author  s  life  that 
the  story  of  his  hymn  and  of  his  life  must  be  told  to¬ 
gether.  The  son  of  John  Newman,  a  London  banker, 
he  was  born,  on  February  21st,  1801,  within  sound  of 
Bow  Bells.  He  was  an  imaginative  boy,  and  so  super¬ 
stitious  that  he  used  constantly  to  cross  himself  on  going 
into  the  dark.  He  never  could  explain  what  started  him 
in  such  a  practice,  for  his  surroundings  were  those  of 
Evangelical  Protestantism,  and  his  own  beliefs  were  Cal- 
vinistic,  including  the  opinion  that  the  Pope  was  anti- 
Christ.  At  his  conversion,  when  fifteen  years  old,  his 
mind  became  filled  with  that  sense  of  communion  with 
God  which  possessed  him  all  his  life,  and  made  outward 
things  seem  as  nothing  to  him.  A  curious  imagination 
took  hold  of  him  at  the  same  time  that  it  was  God’s 


LEAD ,  KINDLY  LIGHT  87 

will  that  he  should  live  a  single  life.  This  feeling  never 
left  him. 

Newman  went  up  to  Oxford,  and  was  graduated  from 
Trinity  College  in  1820  ;  remaining  there  first  as  a  fellow, 
and  then  as  a  tutor,  of  Oriel.  In  1824  he  was  ordained, 
and  in  1828  was  appointed  vicar  of  St.  Mary’s  Church,  at 


REV.  JOHN  HENRY  NEWMAN 

Oxford.  Then  he  began  to  preach  those  sermons  which 
had  so  extraordinary  an  influence,  and  are  thought  by 
many  the  greatest  of  the  century.  Meantime  his  re¬ 
ligious  opinions  were  gradually  changing  under  those 
High  Church  influences  at  Oxford  which  had  their  be¬ 
ginnings  in  Keble’s  Christian  Year.  Especially  marked 


88  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

was  the  influence  of  his  friend  and  fellow  tutor,  Hurrell 
Froude.  Froude  changed  Newman’s  hostility  to  the 
Church  of  Rome  to  deep  admiration,  and  taught  him  to 
look  upon  the  Reformation  as  a  mistake.  “  He  fixed 
deep  in  me,”  says  Newman,  “  the  idea  of  devotion  to  the 
Blessed  Virgin,  and  he  led  me  gradually  to  believe  in 
the  Real  Presence.” 

To  this  period  of  change  and  unrest  the  hymn  be¬ 
longs.  The  anxieties  that  lay  behind  it  and  the  circum¬ 
stances  out  of  which  it  sprang  are  fully  narrated  in  New¬ 
man’s  fascinating  Apologia  pro  Vita  Suo  ;  and  certainly  no 
one  would  care  to  learn  of  them  from  any  other  source : 

“  While  I  was  engaged  in  writing  my  work  upon  the 
Arians  great  events  were  happening  at  home,  which 
brought  out  into  form  and  passionate  expression  the 
various  beliefs  which  had  so  gradually  been  winning 
their  way  into  my  mind.  .  .  .  The  great  Reform  agitation 
was  going  on  around  me  as  I  wrote.  The  Whigs  had 
come  into  power ;  Lord  Grey  had  told  the  Bishops  to 
set  their  house  in  order,  and  some  of  the  Prelates  had 
been  insulted  and  threatened  in  the  streets  of  London. 
The  vital  question  was,  how  were  we  to  keep  the  Church 
from  being  liberalized  ?  there  was  such  apathy  on  the 
subject  in  some  quarters,  such  imbecile  alarm  in  others ; 
the  true  principles  of  Churchmanship  seemed  so  radically 
decayed,  and  there  was  such  distraction  in  the  councils 
of  the  Clergy.  .  .  .  With  the  Establishment  thus  divided 
and  threatened,  thus  ignorant  of  its  true  strength,  I 
compared  that  fresh  vigorous  Power  of  which  I  was 
reading  in  the  first  centuries.  ...  I  said  to  myself, 
‘  Look  on  this  picture  and  on  that  ’ ;  I  felt  dismay  at 
her  prospects,  anger  and  scorn  at  her  do-nothing  per- 


LEAD ,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT 


89 


“  plexity.  I  thought  that  if  Liberalism  once  got  a  footing 
within  her,  it  was  sure  of  the  victory  in  the  event.  I 
saw  that  Reformation  principles  were  powerless  to  rescue 
her.  As  to  leaving  her,  the  thought  never  crossed  my 
imagination  ;  still  I  ever  kept  before  me  that  there  was 
something  greater  than  the  Established  Church,  and  that 
was  the  Church  Catholic  and  Apostolic,  set  up  from  the 
beginning,  of  which  she  was  but  the  local  presence  and 
the  organ.  She  was  nothing  unless  she  was  this.  She 
must  be  dealt  with  strongly  or  she  would  be  lost. 
There  was  need  of  a  second  reformation. 

“  At  this  time  I  was  disengaged  from  college  duties, 
and  my  health  had  suffered  from  the  labor  involved  in 
the  composition  of  my  Volume.  ...  I  was  easily  per¬ 
suaded  to  join  Hurrell  Froude  and  his  Father,  who  were 
going  to  the  south  of  Europe  for  the  health  of  the 
former. 

“We  set  out  in  December,  1832.  ...  I  went  to  vari¬ 
ous  coasts  of  the  Mediterranean  ;  parted  with  my  friends 
at  Rome;  went  down  for  the  second  time  to  Sicily  with¬ 
out  companion,  at  the  end  of  April ;  .  .  .  the  strange¬ 
ness  of  foreign  life  threw  me  back  into  myself.  .  .  . 
England  was  in  my  thoughts  solely,  and  the  news  from 
England  came  rarely  and  imperfectly.  The  bill  for  the 
Suppression  of  the  Irish  Sees  was  in  progress,  and  filled 
my  mind.  ...  It  was  the  success  of  the  Liberal  cause 
which  fretted  me  inwardly.  .  .  . 

“  Especially  when  I  was  left  by  myself,  the  thought  came 
upon  me  that  deliverance  is  wrought  not  by  the  many 
but  by  the  few,  not  by  bodies  but  by  persons.  ...  I 
began  to  think  that  I  had  a  mission.  .  .  .  When  we  took 
leave  of  Monsignore  Wiseman,  he  had  courteously  ex- 


9° 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  pressed  a  wish  that  we  might  make  a  second  visit  to 
Rome ;  I  said  with  great  gravity,  ‘  We  have  a  work  to 
do  in  England.’  I  went  down  at  once  to  Sicily,  and  the 
presentiment  grew  stronger.  I  struck  into  the  middle 
of  the  island,  and  fell  ill  of  a  fever  in  Leonforte.  My 
servant  thought  I  was  dying,  and  begged  for  my  last 
directions.  I  gave  them,  as  he  wished ;  but  I  said,  ‘  I 
shall  not  die.’  I  repeated,  ‘  I  shall  not  die,  for  I  have 
not  sinned  against  light,  I  have  not  sinned  against  light.’ 
I  have  never  been  able  quite  to  make  out  what  I  meant. 

“  I  got  to  Castro-Giovanni,  and  was  laid  up  there  for 
nearly  three  weeks.  Towards  the  end  of  May  I  left  for 
Palermo,  taking  three  days  for  the  journey.  Before 
starting  from  my  inn  in  the  morning  of  May  26th  or  27th, 
I  sat  down  on  my  bed  and  began  to  sob  violently.  My 
servant,  who  had  acted  as  my  nurse,  asked  what  ailed 
me.  I  could  only  answer  him,  ‘  I  have  a  work  to  do  in 
England.’ 

“  I  was  aching  to  get  home ;  yet  for  want  of  a  vessel 
I  was  kept  at  Palermo  for  three  weeks.  I  began  to  visit 
the  Churches,  and  they  calmed  my  impatience,  though  I 
did  not  attend  any  services.  ...  At  last  I  got  off  in  an 
orange  boat,  bound  for  Marseilles.  Then  it  was  that  I 
wrote  the  lines,  ‘  Lead,  kindly  light,’  which  have  since 
become  well  known.  We  were  becalmed  a  whole  week 
in  the  Straits  of  Bonifacio.  I  was  writing  verses  the 
whole  time  of  my  passage.  At  length  I  got  to  Mar¬ 
seilles,  and  set  off  for  England.” 

We  can  now  understand  the  hymn.  We  can  see  into 
the  shadows  that  encircled  him  who  wrote  it, — the  sick¬ 
ness  and  depression,  the  loneliness,  the  dark  thoughts  of 
the  Church  he  still  clung  to.  We  know  his  sense  of  being 


LEAD ,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT 


91 


called  by  God  to  do  a  work  at  home  without  seeing  what 
its  end  might  be.  We  hear  his  answer  to  the  call  in  his 
renunciation  of  all  pride  of  leadership  into  God  s  hands, 
his  cry  for  only  light  enough  to  see  one  step  ahead,  his 
confidence  that  God  will  find  his  path.  bor  yeais, 
Newman  said  in  another  connection,  I  must  have  had 
something  of  an  habitual  notion,  though  it  was  latent, 
and  had  never  led  me  to  distrust  my  own  convictions, 
that  my  mind  had  not  found  its  ultimate  rest,  and  that  in 
some  sense  or  other  I  was  on  journey.  During  the 
same  passage  across  the  Mediterranean  in  which  I  wrote 
<  Lead  kindly  light/  I  also  wrote  the  verses  which  are 


0-1+  '/♦U.  (JTt 


y 

/SS  3 


AUTOGRAPH  LINES  OF  THE  HYMN 

found  in  the  Lyra  under  the  head  of  ‘  Providences/ 
beginning-  ‘  Wken  I  look  back.’  This  was  in  1833  5  and, 
since  I  have  begun  this  narrative,  I  have  found  a  memo¬ 
randum  under  the  date  of  September  7th,  1829,  in  which 
I  speak  of  myself  as  ‘  now  in  my  rooms  in  Oriel  College, 
slowly  advancing,  & c.,  and  led  on  by  God’s  hand  blindly, 
not  knowing  whither  He  is  taking  me.’  ” 


92 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  date  of  the  hymn  is  June  16th,  1833.  On  the 
Sunday  following  Newman’s  return  from  his  southern 
trip  it  happened  that  Mr.  Keble  preached  at  Oxford  his 
famous  sermon  on  “  The  National  Apostasy.”  “  I  have 
ever  considered  and  kept  the  day,”  Newman  says,  “  as 
the  start  of  the  religious  movement  of  1833.” 

Newman  had  returned  in  time  to  become  the  centre 
of  that  very  powerful  movement  to  undo  the  work  of 
the  Reformation  in  England.  But  he  grew  so  much  out 
of  sympathy  with  all  that  Protestantism  stands  for,  that, 
in  1845,  he  asked  to  be  received  into  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church.  His  secession  was  a  great  blow  to  many  of  his 
friends,  to  none  more  than  to  Keble,  to  whom  it  was  a 
life-long  sorrow.  It  caused  also  intense  excitement  and 
bitterness  of  feeling,  the  famous  Apologia  having  been 
written  in  answer  to  charges  of  insincerity  made  by 
Charles  Kingsley. 

Newman  continued  a  devout  Roman  Catholic,  and  in 
1879  was  made  a  cardinal  by  the  Pope,  dying  in  1890. 
It  was  a  strange  career  of  a  wonderfully  gifted  man. 
But  no  one  now  doubts  his  sincerity  or  the  depth  and 
purity  of  his  religion. 

Newman’s  verses  were  first  printed  in  The  British 
Magazine  for  March,  1834,  and  then  in  1836  in  the  Lyra 
Apostolica ,  a  little  book  in  which  the  contributions  to  the 
Magazine  of  Newman,  Keble,  and  other  kindred  spirits, 
were  gathered  up.  In  1846  the  verses  were  included  by 
Longfellow  and  Johnson  in  their  Book  of  Hymns .  Un¬ 
fortunately  they  had  found  them  in  a  newspaper  as 
beginning  “  Send  kindly  light,”  and  so  they  printed 
them.  In  1865  Dr.  Charles  S.  Robinson  printed  them 
with  the  same  opening  in  his  Songs  for  the  Sanctuary. 


LEAD ,  KINDL  V  LIGHT 


93 


He  explained  (in  The  Congregationalist ,  1890)  that  the 
change  was  made  by  a  “  literary  friend  ”  who  first  brought 
the  hymn  to  his  notice,  and  who  assumed  that  the  form 
“  Lead,  kindly  Light  ”  was  a  typographical  error,  arising 
from  the  close  resemblance  of  the  words  Lead  and  Send 
in  careless  manuscript.  It  is  surely  an  instance  of  loyalty 
to  friendship  that  Dr.  Robinson  persisted  in  so  misprint¬ 
ing  the  hymn  in  all  editions  of  that  popular  book  up  to 
the  day  of  his  death.  And  so  the  hymn  stands  in  the 
more  recent  issues  by  the  Century  Company,  now  owning 
the  plates  of  the  book.  The  present  familiarity  and 
popularity  of  the  hymn  began  with  its  inclusion  in  1868 
in  the  Appendix  to  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern.  Cardi¬ 
nal  Newman’s  connection  with  hymnody  by  no  means 
ends  with  this  hymn.  From  his  long  poem,  “  The  Dream 
of  Gerontius,”  has  been  taken  the  fine  hymn  beginning, 
“  Praise  to  the  Holiest  in  the  height  ”  ( The  Hymnal ,  No. 
429).  He  also  published  two  collections  of  Latin  hymns 
taken  from  the  Breviaries,  and  made  numerous  and 
excellent  translations  from  them. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  What  is  the  meaning  of  “  kindly  Light  ”  ?  Newman 
first  printed  his  verses  with  the  title,  “  Faith-Heavenly 
Leadings”;  in  1836  with  the  title,  “  Light  in  the  Dark¬ 
ness,”  and  the  motto,  “  Unto  the  godly  there  ariseth  up 
light  in  the  darkness  ” ;  since  then  with  the  title,  “  The 
Pillar  of  the  Cloud.” 

(2)  Nothing  could  have  been  farther  from  their  author’s 
thoughts  than  the  use  of  his  verses  as  a  hymn.  What 
are  the  qualities  in  verses  so  personal,  so  closely  related 
to  individual  experience  and  circumstances,  that  make 


94 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


them  suitable  to  be  sung  by  a  whole  congregation  ?  The 
Rev.  George  Huntington  has  given  us  (in  his  Random 
Recollections)  the  modest  explanation  of  Cardinal  New¬ 
man  himself :  “  I  had  been  paying  Cardinal  Newman  a 
visit.  ...  I  happened  to  mention  his  well-known  hymn 
‘  Lead,  kindly  Light,’  which  he  said  he  wrote  when  a  very 
young  man.  ...  I  ventured  to  say,  ‘  It  must  be  a  great 
pleasure  to  you  to  know  that  you  have  written  a  Hymn 
treasured  wherever  English-speaking  Christians  are  to 
be  found ;  and  where  are  they  not  to  be  found  ?’  He 
was  silent  for  some  moments  and  then  said  with  emotion, 
‘  Yes,  deeply  thankful,  and  more  than  thankful  ’ ;  then, 
after  another  pause,  ‘  But  you  see  it  is  not  the  Hymn, 
but  the  Tune ,  that  has  gained  the  popularity!  The 
Tune  is  Dykes’s,  and  Dr.  Dykes  was  a  great  Master.’  ” 

The  “  Lux  Benigna  ”  of  Dr.  Dykes  w^as  composed  in 
August,  1865,  and  was  the  tune  chosen  for  this  hymn  by 
the  committee  preparing  the  Appendix  to  Hymns  Ancient 
and  Modern.  Dr.  Dykes’s  statement  that  the  tune  came 
into  his  head  while  walking  through  the  Strand  in 
London  presents  a  striking  contrast  with  the  solitary 
origins  of  the  hymn  itself. 

(3)  “  The  fourth  verse  of  the  hymn  ”  is  often  inquired 
for.  It  has  only  three.  But  Bishop  Bickersteth  printed 
in  his  Hymnal  Companion ,  1870,  a  fourth  verse  of  his 
own  composition,  as  follows  : — 


“  Meantime  along  the  narrow,  rugged  path 
Thyself  hast  trod, 

Lead,  Saviour,  lead  me  home  in  childlike  faith, 
Home  to  my  God, 

To  rest  for  ever  after  earthly  strife 
In  the  calm  light  of  everlasting  life.” 


LEAD,  KINDL  Y  LIGHT 


95 


He  intended  to  express  his  conviction  that  “  the  heart  of 
the  belated  pilgrim  can  only  find  rest  in  the  Light  of 
Light.”  The  author  of  the  hymn  protested  against  the 
addition,  and  many  others  joined  in  the  protest  Can 
the  addition  be  justified  ? 


CARDINAL  NEWMAN 

(4)  What  is  the  meaning  of  the  last  two  lines  of  the 
hymn,  “  And  with  the  morn,”  etc.  ?  No  doubt  those  who 
sing  the  hymn  will  interpret  these  lines  as  expressing 
their  hope  of  being  reunited  with  those  they  have  loved 
and  lost  by  death.  But  it  does  not  follow  that  such  was 


9<5 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


the  author’s  original  meaning.  Would  a  theologian  have 
referred  to  his  glorified  friends  as  angels  ?  Attention  has 
been  called  to  Newman’s  statement  that  after  his  awaken¬ 
ing  to  God  in  his  sixteenth  year,  he  was  strongly  con¬ 
scious  both  in  his  waking  and  sleeping  moments  of  the 
presence  of  angels.  That  consciousness  he  subsequently 
lost,  greatly  to  his  sorrow ;  and  the  suggestion  is  made 
that  these  lines  expressed  his  hope  of  regaining  it  when 
the  night  had  gone.  Another  suggested  meaning  is 
that  in  its  darkness  and  perplexity  the  soul  had  lost  the 
angel  faces  not  only  of  Fancy  and  Hope  and  youthful 
Confidence,  but  of  those  divine  forms  of  Faith  and 
Assurance  which  had  accompanied  the  believer  in  the 
early  fervor  of  his  belief.  When  quite  an  old  man 
Cardinal  Newman  was  asked  by  letter  to  explain  the 
meaning  of  these  lines,  to  which  letter  he  returned  this 
curious  answer : — 

“The  Oratory,  January  18,  1879. 

“  My  dear  Mr.  Greenhill, 

“  You  flatter  me  by  your  question ;  but  T  think  it  was  Keble 
who,  when  asked  it  in  his  own  case,  answered  that  poets  were 
not  bound  to  be  critics,  or  to  give  a  sense  to  what  they  had 
written ;  and  though  I  am  not  like  him,  a  poet,  at  least  I  may 
plead  that  I  am  not  bound  to  remember  my  own  meaning, 
whatever  it  was,  at  the  end  of  almost  fifty  years.  Anyhow, 
there  must  be  a  statute  of  limitation  for  writers  of  verse,  or  it 
would  be  quite  tyranny  if,  in  an  art  which  is  the  expression, 
not  of  truth,  but  of  imagination  and  sentiment,  one  were 
obliged  to  be  ready  for  examination  on  the  transient  state  of 
mind  which  came  upon  one  when  home-sick,  or  sea-sick,  or 
in  any  other  way  sensitive  or  excited. 

“Yours  most  truly, 

“John  H.  Newman.” 


IX 


MY  COUNTRY,  ’TIS  OF  THEE 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

My  country,  ’tis  of  thee, 
Sweet  land  of  liberty, 

Of  thee  I  sing ; 

Land  where  my  fathers  died, 
Land  of  the  pilgrims’  pride, 
From  every  mountain  side 
Let  freedom  ring. 


2  My  native  country,  thee, 

Land  of  the  noble  free, 

Thy  name  I  love ; 

I  love  thy  rocks  and  rills, 

Thy  woods  and  templed  hills; 
My  heart  with  rapture  thrills 
Like  that  above. 


3  Let  music  swell  the  breeze, 
And  ring  from  all  the  trees 
Sweet  freedom’s  song  : 

Let  mortal  tongues  awake  ; 
Let  all  that  breathe  partake ; 
Let  rocks  their  silence  break, 
The  sound  prolong. 


7 


97 


98 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  Our  fathers’  God,  to  Thee, 

Author  of  liberty, 

To  Thee  we  sing  : 

Long  may  our  land  be  bright 
With  freedom’s  holy  light; 

Protect  us  by  Thy  might, 

Great  God,  our  King. 

Rev.  Samuel  Francis  Smith,  1832 

NOTE. — This  is  the  text  of  the  hymn  as  originally  written,  and  which  Dr. 

Smith  expressed  himself  as  feeling  unauthorized  to  alter  in  any 
particular. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

At  a  reunion  of  the  famous  Class  of  1829,  of  Harvard 
College,  one  of  its  members  referred  to  a  classmate  in 

this  way : — 

“  And  there’s  a  nice  youngster  of  excellent  pith, — 

Fate  tried  to  conceal  him  by  naming  him  Smith ; 

But  he  shouted  a  song  for  the  brave  and  the  free, 

Just  read  on  his  medal,  ‘  My  country,’  ‘of  thee !  ’  ” 

It  was  Dr.  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  who  read  the 
poem,  and  it  was  his  friend  and  classmate,  Samuel 
Francis  Smith,  who  wrote  “  My  Country,  ’tis  of  Thee. 

He  was  a  Boston  boy,  born  under  the  sound  of  the 
Old  North  Church  chimes  on  October  21st,  1808.  After 
being  graduated  at  Harvard  he  began  to  study  for  the 
ministry ;  and  it  was  while  at  Andover  Theological 
Seminary,  in  February,  1832,  that  he  wrote  the  hymn. 

In  1831  or  thereabouts  Mr.  Wiliam  C.  Woodbridge, 
a  distinguished  educator,  had  visited  Germany  for  the 
purpose  of  studying  the  system  of  German  common 
schools.  Among  their  peculiarities  he  noted  that  much 
attention  was  given  to  children’s  music,  and  he  brought 


MY  COUNTRY, \  ’T/S  OR  THEE 


99 


home  with  him  a  large  number  of  music  books,  especially 
such  as  were  used  in  the  German  schools.  In  Boston 
just  then  Mr.  Lowell  Mason  was  interesting  himself  in 
the  music  of  the  churches,  and  was  engaged  in  training 
the  Sunday-school  children  to  sing  with  a  view  of  fittino- 
them  to  take  their  places  in  the  choirs.  There  was  quite 
a  scarcity  of  songs  and  tunes  suitable  for  children’s  use, 
and  Mr.  Woodbridge  placed  the  entire  collection  which 
he  had  brought  from  Germany  in  Mr.  Mason’s  hands. 
But  in  all  these  books  the  music  was  set  to  German 
words,  and  of  that  language  Mr.  Mason  had  no 
knowledge. 

And  this  fact  was  the  occasion  which  led  to  the  writ¬ 
ing  of  the  hymn  “  America.”  Dr.  Smith  during  his  life¬ 
time  furnished  many  accounts  of  the  circumstances, 
which,  of  course,  he  alone  knew.  While  all  of  these 
accounts  are  in  substantial  agreement,  much  the  best  of 
them  was  that  written  for  The  Outlook,  and  printed  in 
the  number  for  November  23rd,  1895  : 

At  that  time,  says  Dr.  Smith,  “  I  was  a  student  in 
the  Theological  Seminary  at  Andover.  One  day  [Mr. 
Mason]  brought  me  the  whole  mass  of  his  books,  some 
bound  and  some  in  pamphlet  form,  and  said,  in  his  simple 
and  childlike  way,  ‘  There,  Mr.  Woodbridge  has  brought 
me  these  books.  I  don’t  know  what  is  in  them.  I 
can’t  read  German,  but  you  can.  I  wish  you  would 
look  over  them  as  you  find  time,  and  if  you  fall  in  with 
anything  I  can  use,  any  hymns  or  songs  for  the  children, 

I  wish  you  would  translate  them  into  English  poetry  * 
or,  if  you  prefer,  compose  hymns  or  songs  of  your  own, 
of  the  same  metre  and  accent  with  the  German,  so  that 
I  can  use  them.’ 


AUTOGRAPH  OF  THE  HYMN  (REDUCED) 


MY  COUNTRY,  ’  TIS  OF  THEE 


IOI 


“  I  accepted  the  trust  not  unwillingly,  as  an  agreeable 
recreation  from  graver  studies,  and  from  time  to  time 
gave  him  the  results  of  my  efforts.  Thus  he  was  fur¬ 
nished  with  several  hymns  for  the  Spiritual  Songs ,  which 
he  was  issuing  in  numbers ;  also  for  the  Juvenile  Lyre , 
the  first  book  of  children’s  music  ever  published  in  this 
country,  in  which  most  of  the  songs  were  my  own 
translations  from  Naegeli  and  other  German  composers. 

“One  dismal  day  in  February,  1832,  about  half  an 
hour  before  sunset,  I  was  turning  over  the  leaves  of  one 
of  the  music  books,  when  my  eye  rested  on  the  tune 
which  is  now  known  as  ‘  America.’  I  liked  the  spirited 
movement  of  it,  not  knowing  it,  at  that  time,  to  be 
‘  God  Save  the  King.’  I  glanced  at  the  German  words 
and  saw  that  they  were  patriotic,  and  instantly  felt  the 
impulse  to  write  a  patriotic  hymn  of  my  own,  adapted 
to  the  tune.  Picking  up  a  scrap  of  waste  paper  which 
lay  near  me,  I  wrote  at  once,  probably  within  half  an 
hour,  the  hymn  ‘  America,’  as  it  is  now  known  every¬ 
where.  The  whole  hymn  stands  to-day  as  it  stood  on 
the  bit  of  waste  paper,  five  or  six  inches  long  and  two 
and  a  half  wide.’’ 

Mr.  Smith  had  no  suspicion  that  he  had  in  that  short 
half  hour  made  his  name  imperishable.  He  gave  the 
song  soon  afterward  to  Mr.  Mason,  with  some  others, 
and  thought  no  more  about  it.  On  the  Fourth  of  July 
of  that  same  year  Mr.  Mason  brought  it  out  at  a  chil¬ 
dren’s  celebration  in  the  Park  Street  Church,  Boston. 
From  there  it  soon  found  its  way  into  the  public  schools 
of  that  city,  and  then  of  other  places,  and  into  picnics 
and  patriotic  celebrations  everywhere ;  and  finally  into 
the  hymn  books  of  the  various  denominations.  The 


102 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


whole  history  of  the  hymn  and  its  present  position  are 
summed  up  in  a  remark  once  made  by  the  author  him¬ 
self:  “  The  people  took  it  into  their  hearts.”  To-day  it 
is  called  the  national  hymn,  but  it  is  not  made  so  by  any 
formal  decree  of  adoption.  It  is  the  national  hymn 
simply  because  the  people  that  compose  the  nation  love 
it,  and  on  any  occasion  when  their  hearts  are  fired  by 
patriotic  feelings,  use  this  hymn  spontaneously  to  express 
those  feelings. 

The  author. of  the  hymn 

Samuel  F.  Smith  was  graduated  from  Andover  Semi¬ 
nary  the  same  year  in  which  he  wrote  the  hymn.  For  a 
year  and  a  half  after  graduation  he  was  the  editor  of  the 
Baptist  Missionary  Magazine.  In  February,  1834,  he 
was  ordained,  and  became  pastor  of  the  Baptist  Church 
in  Waterville,  Maine.  He  continued  as  pastor  there  for 
eight  years,  serving  also  as  Professor  of  Modern  Lan¬ 
guages  in  Waterville  College,  now  Colby  University: 
for  among  Dr.  Smith’s  other  gifts  was  that  of  acquiring 
languages.  During  his  life  he  became  familiar  with  no 
less  than  fifteen,  and  a  visitor  to  him  in  his  eighty-sixth 
year  found  him  on  the  lookout  for  a  suitable  text-book 
with  which  he  might  begin  the  study  of  the  Russian 
language. 

In  1842  Dr.  Smith  became  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church  of  Newton,  Massachusetts,  when  he  removed  to 
Newton  Centre.  There  for  more  than  half  a  century  he 
lived  in  a  simple  way  with  his  family  in  the  wide,  brown 
frame  dwelling  of  two  stories,  which  has  been  the  goal 
of  so  many  sight-seers.  He  was  pastor  there  for  twelve 
years  and  a  half,  and  then  Secretary  of  the  Missionary 


Copyrighted.  By  permission  of  Soule  Art  Company 


REV.  SAMUEL  F.  SMITH 


104 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Union  for  fifteen,  spending  two  of  them  abroad  visiting 
missionary  stations. 

Dr.  Smith  led  a  very  busy,  active  life,  preaching, 
editing,  writing,  studying.  From  1842  to  1848  he  was 
editor  of  The  Christian  Review .  He  was  one  of  the 
editors  of  The  Psalmist  (1843),  a  most  successful  Baptist 
hymn  book,  and  compiled  several  collections  of  verse, 
of  which  Rock  of  Ages  is  the  best  known.  He  was 
also  the  author  of  The  Life  of  Joseph  Grafton  (1848), 
Missionary  Sketches  (1879),  The  History  of  Newton , 
Massachusetts ,  (1884),  and  of  Missionary  Sketches  ( 1 884), 
which  embodied  an  account  of  a  later  tour  among  for¬ 
eign  fields. 

His  verse  writing  was  a  recreation  rather  than  his 
occupation,  and  he  made  no  claim  to  be  counted  among 
the  poets.  Certainly  the  large  volume  of  his  verse 
gathered  at  the  close  of  his  life  under  the  editorship  of 
his  friend  General  Carrington  would  yield  no  sure  support 
for  such  a  claim.  He  wrote,  however,  many  successful 
hymns,  of  which  “  The  Morning  Light  is  Breaking  ” 
( The  Hymnal ,  No.  386),  is  especially  familiar.  But,  no 
matter  what  he  accomplished  or  where  he  went,  it  was 
always  as  the  author  of  “  My  Country,  ’tis  of  Thee  ”  that 
he  was  recognized  and  welcomed,  and  was  honored  as 
such  at  a  public  celebration  in  Music  Hall,  Boston,  dur¬ 
ing  the  last  year  of  his  life.  Dr.  Smith  lived  to  be 
eighty-seven  years  old,  active  and  busy  until  the  evening 
of  Saturday,  Nov.  16th,  1895.  On  that  evening  he  took 
the  train  for  Readville,  near  Boston,  where  he  was  to 
preach  the  next  day.  Just  as  he  entered  the  car,  turn¬ 
ing  to  speak  with  a  friend,  he  gasped  for  breath,  threw 
his  hands  into  the  air,  and  fell  backward  in  death. 


MY  COUNTRY, ,  ’  TIS  OF  THEE 


105 


Some  points  for  Discussion 

(1)  Is  it  to  be  regretted  that  these  words  should  be 
sung  to  the  National  Anthem  of  Great  Britain  rather  than 
to  a  distinctive  American  air?  Perhaps,  in  any  event, 
the  connection  is  now  indissoluble,  though  it  hardly 
justifies  us  in  re-naming  the  tune  “America.”  It  would 
be  interesting  to  know  the  origin  of  the  National  Anthem, 
and  who  composed  it.  Much  time  and  pains  have  been 
spent  in  investigating  the  matter,  but  these  questions  still 
remain  unanswered.  All  that  can  be  said  upon  the 
subject  (by  the  man  most  competent  to  say  it)  may  be 
found  in  a  recent  book,  The  Origin  and  History  of  the 
Music  and  Words  of  the  National  Anthem ,  by  Wm.  H. 
Cummings,  published  by  Novello  &  Co.,  London  and 
New  York.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Rhode 
Island  State  Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  on  July  4th,  1901, 
a  committee  was  appointed  to  ascertain  whether  a  suitable 
national  tune  cannot  be  found  for  this  hymn. 

(2)  Once,  in  referring  to  criticisms  of  the  hymn  from  a 
literary  standpoint,  Dr.  Holmes  called  attenton  to  the 
strength  of  the  first  line,  and  said,  “  He  wrote  ‘  My 
country.’  If  he  had  said  ‘  Our  country,’  the  hymn  would 
not  have  been  immortal,  but  that  ‘  my  ’  was  a  master¬ 
stroke.”  Just  what  was  the  gain  of  the  “  my  ”  over 
“  our  ”  in  that  place  ? 

(3)  Is  this  really  a  national  or  only  a  sectional  (New 
England)  hymn  ?  A  correspondent  of  The  Churchman 
(1895)  argued  for  the  latter,  claiming  that  the  line  “  Land 
of  the  pilgrims’  pride  ”  referred  to  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  of 
New  England.  The  same  interpretation  of  this  line  was 
made  in  an  editorial  in  The  Independent  (January  14th* 


io6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


1896).  If  Dr.  Smith  intended  to  refer  to  the  Pilgrim 
Fathers,  that  of  course  is  the  end  of  the  matter.  But  as 
yet  no  one  produces  such  an  interpretation  of  the  line 
coming  from  him.  Apart  from  such  an  authoritative  state¬ 
ment,  is  it  not  the  natural  interpretation  that  “  pilgrims  ” 
are  in  contrast  with  those  whose  fathers  died  here  ;  those 
coming  to  our  shores  and  adopting  our  country  ?  If 
Dr.  Smith  intended  to  refer  to  the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  would 
he  not  have  used  the  capital  in  “  pilgrims  ”  ?  But  he  did 
not  in  such  autograph  copies  as  the  writer  has  seen ;  and 
the  word  is  not  so  printed  in  his  collected  Poems.  Again, 
is  “  pride  ”  a  word  with  which  one  would  describe  the  feel¬ 
ings  of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers  toward  their  new  home  ?  It 
does,  on  the  other  hand,  describe  what  is  plainly  the 
fundamental  feeling  of  many  “  pilgrims  ”  toward  the 
home  of  their  adoption. 

(4)  Of  this  hymn  there  was  but  one  text,  in  universal 
use,  until  in  1892  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Convention 
adopted  the  new  hymnal  containing  as  Hymn  No.  196  a 
mongrel  made  up  of  the  fourth  verse  of  “  My  Country, 
’tis  of  Thee,”  followed  by  the  two  verses  of  “  God  Bless 
our  Native  Land  ”  (altered).  The  editorial  in  The  Inde¬ 
pendent,  already  referred  to,  explains  this  by  the  unwill¬ 
ingness  of  the  Episcopal  Church  to  sing  the  praises  of 
the  Pilgrim  Fathers.  Whatever  we  may  think  of  the 
convention’s  course  in  mutilating  the  hymn,  is  it  not 
more  likely  that  they  were  aiming  at  a  hymn  more  dis¬ 
tinctly  religious  than  Dr.  Smith’s  verses  ? 

(5)  How  can  it  be  explained  that  while  Americans 
really  love  this  hymn,  so  very  few  know  the  words  well 
enough  to  sing  them  when  called  upon  ?  Is  this  fact 
creditable  to  the  people  ? 


X 


ONWARD,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Onward,  Christian  soldiers, 

Marching  as  to  war, 

With  the  cross  of  Jesus 
Going  on  before  : 

Christ  the  Royal  Master 
Leads  against  the  foe  ; 

Forward  into  battle, 

See,  His  banners  go. 

Onward,  Christian  soldiers, 
Marching  as  to  war, 
With  the  cross  of  Jesus 
Going  on  before. 

2  At  the  sign  of  triumph 

Satan’s  host  doth  flee ; 

On  then,  Christian  soldiers, 

On  to  victory: 

Hell’s  foundations  quiver 
At  the  shout  of  praise  ; 

Brothers,  lift  your  voices, 

Loud  your  anthems  raise. 

Onward,  etc. 

3  Like  a  mighty  army 

Moves  the  Church  of  God  ; 
Brothers,  we  are  treading 

Where  the  saints  have  trod ; 


107 


io8 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


We  are  not  divided, 

All  one  body  we, 

One  in  hope  and  doctrine, 

One  in  charity. 

Onward,  etc. 

4  Crowns  and  thrones  may  perish, 

Kingdoms  rise  and  wane, 

But  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Constant  will  remain ; 

Gates  of  hell  can  never 

’Gainst  that  Church  prevail ; 

We  have  Christ’s  own  promise, 

And  that  cannot  fail. 

Onward,  etc. 

5  Onward,  then,  ye  people, 

Join  our  happy  throng, 

Blend  with  ours  your  voices 
In  the  triumph-song; 

Glory,  laud,  and  honor 
Unto  Christ  the  King; 

This  through  countless  ages 
Men  and  angels  sing. 

Onward,  etc. 

Rev.  Sabine  Baring-Gould,  1865 

Note. — The  text  is  that  printed  in  the  Appendix  to  Hymns  Ancient  and 
Modern ,  1868,  and  ever  since  the  standard.  An  autograph 
copy  of  the  hymn  in  the  writer’s  possession  reads,  in  the  second 
line  of  the  second  verse,  “  Satan’s  legions  flee.” 


The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

This  marching  hymn  was  written  in  England  just  at 
the  time  when  in  our  own  country  the  sad  strife  of  the 
Civil  War  had  drawn  to  a  close.  And  it  is  not  unlikely 
that  the  new  soldier-spirit  left  in  the  hearts  of  young 
and  old  Americans  by  the  four  years  of  the  Civil  War 
has  had  something  to  do  with  the  marked  popularity 


ONWARD ,  CHR ISTIAN  SOLDIERS  IO9 

gained  by  this  and  other  military  hymns.  An  influ¬ 
ence  of  the  same  sort  can  be  seen  plainly  in  American 
hymn  books  published  after  the  close  of  the  Revolution 
of  1776. 

The  Rev.  Sabine  Baring-Gould  wrote  the  hymn  while 
curate  of  a  Yorkshire  parish,  and  in  a  recent  interview 
he  has  given  an  account  of  its  origin.  “  It  was  written,” 
he  says,  “in  a  very  simple  fashion,  without  a  thought  of 
publication.  Whitmonday  is  a  great  day  for  school 
festivals  in  Yorkshire,  and  one  Whitmonday  it  was 
arranged  that  our  school  should  join  its  forces  with 
that  of  a  neighboring  village.  I  wanted  the  children  to 
sing  when  marching  from  one  village  to  the  other,  but 
couldn’t  think  of  anything  quite  suitable,  so  I  sat  up  at 
night  resolved  to  write  something  myself.  ‘  Onward, 
Christian  Soldiers’  was  the  result.  It  was  written  in 
great  haste,  and  I  am  afraid  some  of  the  rhymes  are 
faulty.  Certainly  nothing  has  surprised  me  more  than 
its  great  popularity.”  The  hymn  was  written  to  be  sung 
to  a  well-known  tune  by  Haydn,  which  has  been  much 
used  in  American  churches ;  so  much  used,  indeed,  that 
it  became  worn  out. 

“Onward,  Christian  Soldiers”  was  written  in  1865. 
That  same  year  it  was  printed  in  a  periodical,  The  Church 
Times.  As  early  as  1868  it  was  given  a  place  in  the 
Appendix  to  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern ,  thus  securing 
a  sponsor  of  the  most  influential  kind.  This  was  at  a 
time  when  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  the 
United  States  was  restive  under  its  old  hymn  book,  and 
feeling  its  way  toward  something  better.  Eager  eyes  had 
already  turned  toward  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern.  Its 
very  name  pleased  the  growing  party  who  were  seeking 


1 10 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  primitive  ”  paths,  while  the  High  Church  doctrine  of  its 
hymns  and  the  ecclesiastical  tone  of  the  new  “  Anglican 
school  ”  of  music  it  represented,  won  their  hearts  com¬ 
pletely.  A  reprint  of  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern  and 
its  new  Appendix  appeared  at  Philadelphia  in  1869,  with 
the  imprint  of  the  Lippincotts.  In  this  “  Onward,  Chris¬ 
tian  Soldiers  ”  appeared  for  the  first  time,  probably,  in 
this  country.  During  the  year  following  the  Rev. 
Charles  L.  Hutchins  included  it  in  his  Church  Hymnal , 
originally  planned  for  use  in  St.  Paul’s  Cathedral,  Buffalo, 
New  York.  In  1871  it  appeared  in  the  draft  of  the  new 
hymnal  laid  before  the  General  Convention  of  the  Prot¬ 
estant  Episcopal  Church,  becoming  one  of  the  author¬ 
ized  hymns  of  that  Church.  Into  the  church-worship 
of  other  denominations  the  hymn  (like  many  other 
things  that  would  once  have  seemed  alien)  gradually 
worked  its  way  by  first  becoming  familiar  in  the  freer 
atmosphere  of  the  Sunday-schools.  The  hymn  was  not 
included  in  the  authorized  Presbyterian  Hymnal  of  1874, 
although  the  compilers  of  that  book  made  large  use  of 
Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern.  The  rival  Hymns  and 
Songs  of  Praise ,  by  Drs.  Hitchcock  and  Schaff,  pub¬ 
lished  that  same  year,  did,  however,  include  it. 

What  proved  a  most  effective  letter  of  introduction 
for  the  hymn,  and  has  secured  its  continued  general  use, 
was  the  appearance  in  The  Musical  Times  for  December, 
1871,  of  the  stirring  tune  written  for  it  by  Arthur  S. 
Sullivan,  to  which  it  has  been  wedded  ever  since.  At 
the  present  time  it  is  unquestionably  the  most  popular 
and  often-used  of  all  processional  hymns.  If  it  should 
ever  drop  out  of  use,  that  result  would  probably  come 
about  through  sheer  weariness  caused  by  over-repetition. 


ONWARD ,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS 


1 1 1 


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AUTOGRAPH  VERSES 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

In  this  hymn  we  have  for  the  first  time  one  by  a  living 
author.  Mr.  Baring-Gould  is  so  many-sided  a  man,  with 
such  a  variety  of  gifts  and  accomplishments,  and  he  has 
done  so  much  work  of  so  many  kinds,  that  he  may  be 


I  12 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


said  to  combine  in  himself  the  material  for  the  make-up 
of  at  least  two  distinguished  men.  There  is,  therefore, 
an  amusing  fitness  in  his  compound  name,  and  in  the 
fact  that  sometimes  he  is  indexed  among  the  B’s  for 
Baring,  and  sometimes  among  the  G’s  for  Gould. 

Mr.  Baring-Gould  is  now  rector  of  the  parish  of  Lew 
Trenchard,  where  his  family  has  had  its  seat  for  nearly 
three  hundred  years.  He  is  also  squire  and  lord  of 
the  manor  and  a  justice  of  the  peace.  He  lives  in 
Lew  Trenchard  Manor  House,  inherited  with  the  family 
property  at  his  father’s  death  in  1 872.  His  study  is  de¬ 
scribed  as  a  long,  low  room,  with  a  deep  embrasured 
window  overlooking  a  lovely  view,  and  paneled  in  fine 
dark  oak,  with  the  rich  carvings  of  the  old  English  time. 
In  this  room  works  the  remarkable  man,  who  is  not 
only  squire  and  rector,  but  also  theologian,  historian, 
antiquarian,  student  of  comparative  religion,  novelist, 
and  poet.  The  amount  of  literary  work  done  in  this 
room,  much  of  it  requiring  wide  research,  is  no  less  than 
amazing.  On  religious  subjects,  besides  many  volumes 
of  his  sermons  and  devotional  and  practical  writings,  he 
has  written  a  number  of  works  of  a  more  learned  char¬ 
acter.  Of  these,  the  best  known,  perhaps,  are,  The  Lives 
of  the  Saints ,  in  fifteen  volumes,  and  The  Origin  and 
Development  of  Religious  Belief  \  in  two.  He  has  pub¬ 
lished  many  volumes  dealing  with  manners  and  customs, 
legendary  and  folk  lore,  antiquities  and  'out-of-the-way 
information,  of  which  he  is  himself  a  living  encyclopedia. 
Curious  Myths  of  the  Middle  Apes,  Legends  of  the  Old 
Testament ,  Iceland,  Its  Scenes  and  its  Sagas,  Curiosities 
of  the  Olden  Times,  The  Songs  of  the  West,  are  but 
a  few  of  the  more  familiar  titles.  And  for  some  time 


I 


ONWARD ,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS 


113 


it  has  been  his  custom  to  write  a  new  novel  every 
year.  In  England  he  is  one  of  the  most  popular  living 
novelists. 

In  all  this  work  Mr.  Baring-Gould  has  employed  no 
secretaries  or  amanuenses.  “  The  secret  is  simply  that  I 


REV.  SABINE  BARING-GOULD 


stick  to  a  task  when  I  begin  it,”  he  once  said.  “  For 
some  years  I  have  found  it  necessary  to  spend  the 
winters  abroad,  and  while  I  am  in  the  south  of  France  or 
in  Rome  I  think  out  the  work  which  I  am  going  to  do 
when  I  return  home.  Thus  I  build  up  the  plot  of  a 
8 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


1 14 

“  story,  and  it  all  shapes  itself  in  my  head,  even  the  dia¬ 
logue.  I  make  a  few  notes,  principally  of  the  division 
of  the  chapters,  and  then,  when  I  come  back,  it  is  simply 
a  matter  of  writing  it  out.” 

When  asked  if  he  did  not  have  to  wait  for  inspiration, 
he  replied  with  a  quiet  smile,  “  Inspiration  is  all  moon¬ 
shine  in  the  sense  in  which  you  mean  it.  It  would  nevei 
do  to  wait  from  day  to  day  for  some  moment  which 
might  seem  favorable  for  work  ”  ;  adding  that  he  often 
did  his  best  work  when  he  felt  the  least  desire  to  go  on 
with  it.  His  hymn  writing  is,  of  course,  small  in  quantity 
beside  the  great  volume  of  his  other  achievements,  but  it 
certainly  does  not  lack  what  is  called  inspiration,  whether 
waited  for  or  worked  for.  He  has  written  many  carols 
and  quite  a  number  of  hymns,  all  of  which  have  fresh 
and  striking  qualities.  Next  to  “Onward,  Christian 
Soldiers,”  the  lovely  evening  hymn  for  children,  “  Now 
the  Day  is  Over”  {The  Hymnal ,  No.  692),  and  his  trans¬ 
lation,  “Through  the  Night  of  Doubt  and  Sorrow” 
(The  Hymnal ,  No.  418),  are  probably  most  often  sung. 

Mr.  Baring-Gould  was  born  at  Exeter,  January  28th, 
1834.  He  was  graduated  from  Clare  College,  Cambridge, 

,  in  1854.  In  1864  he  was  ordained  and  became  curate 
of  Horbury,  where  he  wrote  our  hymn.  From  1867  he 
was  Incumbent  of  Dalton,  until  Mr.  Gladstone  appointed 
him  Rector  of  East  Mersea,  in  1871.  The  rectorate  of 
Lew  Trenchard  is  what  in  England  is  called  a  family 
living,  and  when  in  1881  the  last  incumbent  died,  Mr. 
Baring-Gould,  who  was  the  patron  of  the  living  as  well 
as  lord  of  the  manor,  became  also  rector  of  the  parish 
by  his  own  appointment.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  he 
chose  an  able  and.  hard-working  man  to  fill  the  post. 


ONWARD ,  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS  I  I  5 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  This  hymn  may  be  examined  as  an  example  of  a 
class  of  hymns  standing  somewhat  apart  from  others. 
It  is  what  is  called  a  processional  hymn.  In  church  life 
a  processional  hymn  corresponds  to  a  marching  song  in 
civil  life,  one  “  useful  for  church  parade  and  similar  ser¬ 
vices.”  What  are  the  qualities  proper  for  such  a  hymn  ? 
Is  there  any  other  so  good  for  the  purpose  as  this  ? 

(2)  It  is  interesting  to  contrast  this  Anglican  “  Onward, 
Christian  Soldiers  ”  with  the  Presbyterian  “  Stand  Up, 
Stand  Up  for  Jesus.”  Note  the  different  ways  in  which 
the  two  writers  picture  the  Church.  Can  you  trace  in 
each  hymn  the  marks  of  the  peculiar  type  of  Christianity 
for  which  the  author  stands  ?  Which  hymn  has  more 
picturesque  beauty,  and  which  the  greater  moral  earnest¬ 
ness  ?  But  is  not  the  purpose  and  right  use  of  the 
hymns  quite  different?  If  so,  each  must  be  judged  from 
its  own  standpoint. 

(3)  In  what  sense  are  we  to  take  the  statements  of  the 
third  verse, — 

“  We  are  not  divided, 

All  one  body  we, 

One  in  hope  and  doctrine,”  etc.  ? 

They  may  be  contrasted  with  the  familiar  lines  of  his 
fellow-churchman  (the  Rev.  Samuel  J.  Stone), — 

“  Though  with  a  scornful  wonder 
Men  see  her  sore  oppressed, 

By  schisms  rent  asunder, 

By  heresies  distressed.” 

And  what  and  where  found  is  “  Christ’s  own  promise  ” 
referred  to  in  the  fourth  verse? 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  IIYMXS 


1 16 

_  As  originally  written,  the  hymn  ha  a  an 
ithen  the  fourth)  verse,  as  tollows : — 

-*  V.  the  sai ~  eeci-  .ishec. 

Thar  I  hol-i  £or  tine. 

Wfaar  the  itzis  belie  Ted 
That  believe  I  too. 

T  nr-~r  as  eaxtn  errrirrecii 

Men  ~.r  Faith  will  ho  A — 

Kin  A  r->.  mriocs.  emreres. 
la.  deserttetion.  rhea' 

This  is  to  be  read  immediately  after  tae  present  tni id 
verse.  Should  it  be  restored  to  its  original  place  ?  The 
faulty  rhvme  in  this  verse  is  doubtless  what  the  antnor 
had  in  mind  in  the  remark  already  quoted.) 


NEARER,  MY  GOD,  TO  THEE 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

i  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 
Nearer  to  Thee! 

E’en  though  it  be  a  cross 
That  raiseth  me  ; 

Still  all  my  song-  shall  be. 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee. 
Nearer  to  Thee! 


2  Though  like  the  wanderer. 
The  sun  gone  down. 
Darkness  be  over  me. 

My  rest  a  stone; 

Yet  in  my  dreams  I’d  be 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee. 
Nearer  to  Thee! 


3  There  let  the  way  appear. 
Steps  unto  heaven  : 

All  that  Thou  send’st  to  me 
In  mercy  given : 

Angels  to  beckon  me 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 
Nearer  to  Thee! 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


1 1 8 


4  Then,  with  my  waking  thoughts 

Bright  with  Thy  praise, 

Out  of  my  stony  griefs 
Bethel  I’ll  raise  ; 

So  by  my  woes  to  be 
Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 

Nearer  to  Thee! 

5  Or  if  on  joyful  wing 

Cleaving  the  sky, 

Sun,  moon,  and  stars  forgot, 

Upwards  I  fly, 

Still  all  my  song  shall  be, 

Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee, 

Nearer  to  Thee  ! 

Sarah  Flower  Adams,  1841 

NOTE. — The  text  is  taken  from  W.  J.  Fox’s  Hymns  and  Anthems  ,  with  a 
single  change,  referred  to  under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

In  the  year  1820  there  came  to  Dalston,  then  a  rural 
suburb  of  London,  a  little  family  composed  of  Benjamin 
Flower,  a  widower,  and  his  two  daughters,  the  younger 
of  whom  was  afterward  to  write  this  hymn. 

Something  of  a  career  lay  behind  Mr.  Flower,  then 
an  elderly  man.  Unsuccessful  in  business  speculations 
as  a  young  man,  he  had  become  a  travelling  salesman  on 
the  continent.  There  he  became  an  adherent  of  the 
French  Republic,  and  in  1792  published  a  book  on  the 
French  Constitution  which  was  really  an  attack  on  that 
of  England.  He  was  selected  to  edit  The  Cambridge 
Intelligencer ,  an  influential  weekly  of  radical  principles. 
Accused  of  libelling  the  Bishop  of  Llandaff,  whose 
political  conduct  he  had  censured,  he  was  sentenced  to 
six  months’  imprisonment  in  Newgate  with  a  fine  of 


NEARER ,  MY  GOD ,  TO  THEE 


Il9 


£100.  He  was  visited  in  prison  by  Miss  Eliza  Gould,  a 
lady  who  is  said  to  have  suffered  for  her  own  liberal 
principles,  and  shortly  after  his  release  he  married  her. 
They  settled  at  Harlow  in  Essex,  where  Mr.  Flower 
became  a  printer  and  where  Mrs.  Flower  died  in  1810. 
These  facts  of  their  father’s  career  help  us  to  understand 
the  atmosphere  in  which  the  motherless  girls  grew  up. 

Both  daughters  had  inherited  their  mother’s  delicate 
constitution,  but  both  were  talented  to  an  unusual  de¬ 
gree,  and  they  attracted  to  the  Dalston  home  many 
friends  who  afterward  became  distinguished.  Among 
these  were  Harriet  Martineau  and  Robert  Browning, 
“  the  boy  poet,”  as  Eliza  Flower  calls  him  in  her  letters, 
who  came  often  to  discuss  religious  difficulties  with  her 
sister  Sarah.  Eliza,  the  elder,  was  a  skilful  musician 
with  a  remarkable  gift  for  musical  composition.  Sarah, 
the  younger  of  the  sisters,  was  also  musical,  and  pos¬ 
sessed  of  a  rich  contralto  voice,  and  was  much  given  to 
singing  songs  in  costume,  with  appropriate  dramatic 
action.  The  elder  sister  always  furnished  the  accompa¬ 
niment,  and  sometimes  the  musical  settings  of  these 
songs,  in  their  domestic  entertainments. 

Sarah  Flower  was  born  at  the  Harlow  home  on 
February  22nd,  1805.  She  had  the  dramatic  instinct, 
and  from  childhood  cherished  the  ambition  of  adopting 
the  stage  as  a  profession.  She  idealized  the  stage  as  an 
ally  of  the  pulpit,  and  held  that  the  life  of  an  actress 
should  be  as  high  and  noble  as  the  great  thoughts  and 
actions  she  was  called  upon  to  express.  In  1829  her 
father  died,  and  in  1834  Sarah  Flower  was  married  to 
John  Brydges  Adams,  a  civil  engineer  and  an  ingenious 
inventor  in  the  early  days  of  railroad  building.  Her 


120 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


husband  encouraged  her  dramatic  ambition,  and  in  1837 
she  made  her  first  public  appearance,  at  the  Richmond 
Theatre,  as  “  Lady  Macbeth.”  Her  success  was  great 
enough  to  gain  for  her  an  engagement  at  the  Bath 
Theatre.  But  her  health  gave  away  under  the  strain  of 
public  performances,  and  she  suffered  a  seige  of  illness 
at  Bath  which  at  once  put  an  end  to  all  hope  of  a  dra¬ 
matic  career. 

Mrs.  Adams  determined  to  devote  herself  to  literary 
work,  for  she  had  in  addition  a  considerable  literary  gift. 
She  wrote  much  for  the  Monthly  Repository ,  but  her 
most  ambitious  effort  was  “  Vivia  Perpetua — a  Dramatic 
Poem,”  published  in  1841.  It  tells  the  story  of  a  young 
mother  who  suffered  a  martyr’s  death  at  Carthage,  a.  d. 
203,  for  her  faith  in  Christ.  There  is  but  little  doubt 
that  her  own  moral  earnestness  and  intense  feelings  are 
set  forth  in  the  character  of  Vivia.  The  poem  is  often 
eloquent,  but  as  a  drama  not  well  constructed,  and  it  has 
taken  no  permanent  place  in  literature.  “  The  Royal 
Progress,”  a  long  poem  in  ballad  metre,  has  met  a  like 
fate.  Mrs.  Adams’s  high  ideals  and  ambitions  led  her 
to  undertake  tasks  beyond  her  powers.  Though  am¬ 
bitious  to  lead  in  the  moral  uplifting  of  the  stage,  even 
the  ordinary  routine  of  an  actress’s  life  was  beyond  her 
physical  powers.  And  so  her  attempt  to  revive  the 
poetical  drama  was  quite  as  far  beyond  her  intellectual 
powers.  She  had,  however,  a  real  gift  for  lyrical  poetry. 
By  her  lyrics  she  retains  a  modest  place  in  literature, 
and  is  chiefly  remembered  as  the  author  of  “  Nearer,  My 
God,  to  Thee.” 

Mrs.  Adams  is  described  by  her  friend,  Mrs.  Bridell 
Fox,  as  “  tall  and  singularly  beautiful,  with  noble  and 


NEARER,  MY  GOD ,  TO  THEE 


I  2  I 


/T 


“  regular  features  ;  in  manner  gay  and  impulsive,  her  con¬ 
versation  witty  and  sparkling.”  The  portrait  here  given 
is  a  facsimile  of  a  slight  sketch  believed  to  have  been 
made  by  Miss  Margaret  Gillies  in  1834.  Mrs.  Adams 
seems  to  have  made  a  deep  impression  upon  the  minds 
of  those  who  knew  her.  They  speak  enthusiastically 
of  her  personal  charm,  and  of  her  purity  and  high¬ 
mindedness.  In  his  “  Blue-Stocking  Revels,”  the  poet 
Leigh  Hunt  also  pays  tribute  to  her  as  “  Mrs.  Adams, 
rare  mistress  of  thought  and  of  tears.” 

Both  of  the  sisters  died  while  still  in  early  life,  and 
within  less  than  two  years  of  each  other.  Eliza  died  of 
consumption  in  December,  1846,  and  Sarah  on  August 
14th,  1848;  the  death  of  the  younger  sister  was  prob- 


122 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


ably  hastened  by  the  cares  and  anxiety  occasioned  by 
the  long  illness  of  the  elder.  At  the  funerals  of  both, 
hymns  by  Mrs.  Adams  were  sung  to  music  composed 
for  them  by  her  sister.  One  cannot  avoid  a  feeling  of 
regret  that  some  foretaste  of  her  usefulness  and  fame  did 
not  come  to  brighten  the  failing  days  of  the  author  of 
“  Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee.” 

The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

After  the  death  of  Mr.  Flower,  his  daughters  removed 
to  Upper  Clapton,  a  suburb  of  London,  and  there  con¬ 
nected  themselves  with  the  religious  society  to  which 
the  gifted  William  Johnson  Fox  ministered,  in  South 
Place  Chapel,  Finsbury.  Mr.  Fox  occupied  an  inde¬ 
pendent  ecclesiastical  position,  though  generally  classed 
as  a  Unitarian.  For  the  use  of  the  congregation  he 
prepared  a  collection  of  Hymns  and  Anthems ,  published 
in  1840  and  1841,  in  two  parts.  At  his  request  Mrs. 
Adams  wrote  for  the  book  thirteen  original  hymns  and 
some  translations.  One  of  the  hymns  was  “  Nearer,  My 
God,  to  Thee,”  and  it  first  appeared  in  the  second  part 
of  the  book.  Like  most  of  Mrs.  Adams’s  hymns  it  was 
set  to  music  by  her  sister,  and  was  often  heard  in  the 
services  of  South  Place  Chapel. 

“  How  she  composed  her  hymns,”  says  Mrs.  Bridell 
Fox,  “  can  hardly  be  stated.  She  certainly  never  had 
any  idea  of  composing  them.  They  were  the  spontan¬ 
eous  expression  of  some  strong  impulse  of  feeling  of 
the  moment ;  she  was  essentially  a  creature  of  impulse. 
Her  translations  would,  of  course,  be  an  exception  ;  also, 
perhaps,  when  she  was  writing  words  for  music  already 
in  use  in  the  chapel.” 


NEARER ,  MY  GOD ,  TO  THEE 


123 


“  Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee  ”  was  not  long  in  finding 
its  way  across  the  ocean.  While  Mr.  Fox  was  compil¬ 
ing  his  hymn  book  for  his  London  congregation,  an 
American  clergyman,  somewhat  like  him  in  his  religious 
views,  the  Rev.  James  Freeman  Clarke,  was  organizing 
a  new  congregation  in  Boston  as^  the  Church  of  the 
Disciples.  (It  is  the  church  described  as  the  Church  of 
the  Galileans  in  Dr.  Holmes’s  Professor  at  the  Breakfast 
Table)  Mr.  Clarke  printed  a  new  hymn  book  for  it  in 
1844,  including  a  number  of  hymns  from  Mi.  boxs 


/zz 

Z  ' 

A  /T 


-V 


AN  AUTOGRAPH  VERSE 


book,  a  copy  of  which  had  been  given  him  by  his  friend 
Mr.  Bakewell  of  Pittsburgh.  Among  these  was  “  Nearer, 
My  God,  to  Thee,”  and  in  1846  Mr.  Longfellow  put  the 
hymn  into  his  Book  of  Hymns.  It  was  some  time,  how¬ 
ever,  before  it  made  its  way  into  the  orthodox  Congre¬ 
gational  churches.  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  who  was 


124  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

never  afraid  of  novelty,  included  it  in  the  Plymouth 
Collection  in  1855*  But  what  started  the  hymn  on  its 
free  course  in  America  was  the  tune  “  Bethany,”  which 
Lowell  Mason  wrote  for  it  and  published  in  1856.  And 
when  the  hymn,  set  to  this  taking  tune,  appeared  in  1859 
in  the  wonderfully  successful  Sabbath  Hymn  and  Pune 
hook  of  the  professors  at  Andover  Seminary,  its  general 
use  became  assured.  By  1866  it  had  found  its  way  into 
the  authorized  hymnal  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Although  so  popular  with  congregations,  this 
hymn  has  had  rather  hard  treatment  at  the  hands  of 
editors  of  hymn  books.  In  a  number  of  cases  the 
editor  has  inserted  a  new  stanza,  composed  by  himself. 
Bishop  How  rewrote  the  entire  hymn  for  the  1864 
edition  of  his  Psalms  and  Hymns.  The  object  of  these 
changes  was  to  introduce  the  name  and  work  of  Christ, 
“  to  make  the  hymn  more  distinctly  Christian.”  Is  there 
a  real  lack  in  the  hymn,  needing  to  be  supplied  in  some 
such  way  ?  Or  is  it  likely  that  the  Unitarian  origin  of 
the  hymn  suggested  the  need  of  change  ? 

(2)  The  text  of  the  hymn  has  also  suffered  much 
from  alteration,  and  is  very  rarely  printed  as  Mrs. 
Adams  wrote  it.  In  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Hymnal , 
for  instance,  “  the  wanderer  ”  of  verse  two  becomes  “  a 
wanderer,”  and  the  following  line  reads,  “  Weary  and 
lone.”  The  “  Bethel,”  of  verse  four,  becomes  “altars.” 
Is  not  the  Bible  story  on  which  the  hymn  is  based  com¬ 
pletely  hidden  by  these  changes  ?  In  The  Hymnal  only 
one  word  differs  from  what  Mrs.  Adams  wrote.  In  the 
fifth  line  she  wrote  “  would  be  ”  instead  of  “  shall  be.” 


NEARER,  MY  GOD ,  TO  THEE 


125 


The  editor  thought  “  would  be  ”  better,  because  less 
boastful  and  self-confident,  but  he  feared  to  make  con¬ 
fusion  by  changing  what  everybody  sings  from  memory. 
The  editor  of  the  new  Presbyterian  hymnal  for  Scotland 
was  braver,  and  prints  Mrs.  Adams’s  text,  here,  as  in 
every  other  particular. 

(3)  Perhaps  no  hymn  is  sung  more  thoughtlessly  than 
this.  What  is  the  meaning  of  “  E’en  though  it  be  a 
cross  That  raiseth  me  ”  ?  Write  out  the  leading  thought 
of  the  hymn  in  plain  prose.  Is  it  not  singular  that  a 
hymn  expressing  desire  to  draw  nearer  to  God  by  the 
way  of  suffering  should  be  so  often  declared  their  favorite 
hymn  by  persons  apparently  the  most  self-indulgent  ? 

(4)  The  literary  merits  of  the  hymn  are  much  debated. 
One  may  admit  certain  faults.  Indeed,  he  owes  it  to 
himself  to  recognize  that  “  stony  griefs  ”  is  a  bad  meta¬ 
phor,  and  that,  if  a  verse  is  to  be  omitted  in  singing,  the 
last  verse  is  not  ill-adapted  to  such  a  purpose.  But 
notice,  on  the  other  hand,  the  perfect  “  singableness  ”  of 
the  hymn.  And  singableness  is  the  first  merit  of  a  lyric. 
Note,  also — who  has  not  noted  ? — the  haunting  beauty 
of  the  refrain,  and  the  happy  introduction  of  the  lonely 
figure  of  Jacob.  Is  it  not  fair  to  say  that,  even  from  a 
literary  point  of  view,  the  merits  of  the  hymn  outweigh 
its  defects  ? 

(5)  It  is  likely  that  this  hymn  will  always  be  associated 
with  the  tragic  death  and  the  obsequies  of  President 
McKinley.  The  last  words  of  the  President,  as  reported 
by  the  attendant  physician  (Dr.  M.  D.  Mann),  were : 
“  ‘  Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee,  E’en  though  it  be  a  cross,’ 
has  been  my  constant  prayer.”  It  is  not  unnatural  that 
the  grieved  heart  of  the  American  people  was  deeply 


126 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


touched  by  such  allusion  under  such  circumstances. 
The  hymn  was  sung  in  hundreds  of  churches  over  the 
country  on  the  Sunday  following,  and  in  memorial  gath¬ 
erings  of  every  sort.  One  heard  the  familiar  strains  of 
the  tune  from  strong-lunged  bands  of  itinerant  musicians 
in  city  streets,  the  street  children  and  their  elders  often 
gathering  about  the  performers,  and  perhaps  joining  in  the 
hymn.  On  the  day  of  the  burial  at  Canton,  Thursday, 
September  19th,  1901,  all  traffic  in  the  cities  stopped,  by 
previous  arrangement,  at  half  past  three  o’clock,  and  for 
five  minutes  there  was  silence.  People  in  the  trolley 
cars  rose  and  those  in  the  streets  bared  their  heads  and 
stood,  often  joining  in  singing  the  words  of  the  hymn. 
In  Union  and  Madison  Squares,  New  York  City,  immense 
throngs  had  assembled,  and  after  the  period  of  silence, 
bands  played  “  Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee,”  and  then  “  Lead, 
Kindly  Light,”  a  favorite  hymn  of  the  dead  President, 
during  which  every  head  in  the  throng  remained  uncov¬ 
ered.  The  whole  occasion  was  remarkable  as  a  demon¬ 
stration  of  popular  feeling  in  which  reverence  seemed  to 
have  a  share.  Has  any  other  hymn  ever  received  such 
popular  recognition  ? 


XII 


WHEN  I  SURVEY  THE  WONDROUS  CROSS 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  When  I  survey  the  wondrous  cross 

On  which  the  Prince  of  glory  died, 

My  richest  gain  I  count  but  loss, 

And  pour  contempt  on  all  my  pride. 

2  Forbid  it,  Lord,  that  I  should  boast, 

Save  in  the  death  of  Christ  my  God: 

All  the  vain  things  that  charm  me  most, 

I  sacrifice  them  to  His  blood. 

3  See,  from  His  head,  His  hands,  His  feet, 

Sorrow  and  love  flow  mingled  down: 

Did  e’er  such  love  and  sorrow  meet, 

Or  thorns  compose  so  rich  a  crown  ? 

4  Were  the  whole  realm  of  nature  mine, 

That  were  a  present  far  too  small ; 

Love  so  amazing,  so  Divine, 

Demands  my  soul,  my  life,  my  all. 

Rev.  Isaac  Watts,  1707 

Note. — Four  verses  of  the  original  five  ;  for  the  omitted  verse  see  under 
“Some  Points  for  Discussion.”  The  text  is  taken  from  the 
second  edition  of  Dr.  Watts’s  Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs ,  Lon¬ 
don,  1709. 


127 


128 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

While  still  a  young  man  the  Rev.  Isaac  Watts  pub¬ 
lished  in  London,  in  1707,  a  volume  of  Hymns  and  Spir¬ 
itual  Songs.  It  was  intended  to  be  used  as  a  hymn  book, 
but  it  was  not  a  collection  out  of  many  authors,  every 
hymn  being  composed  by  Watts  himself 

In  these  days  of  hymn  writing  and  hymn  singing  it  is 
hard  for  us  to  feel  how  original  and  even  daring  his 
venture  was.  There  had,  of  course,  been  writers  of 
English  hymns  before  Watts.  But  none  of  them  had 
established  a  precedent  or  model  to  which  he  and  others 
were  expected  to  conform.  He  had  to  form  his  own 
ideal  of  what  a  hymn  for  congregational  use  should  be. 
It  was  these  hymns  of  Watts  himself  that  were  destined 
to  become  such  a  precedent  to  his  successors ;  and  that 
is  what  James  Montgomery  meant  in  calling  him  “  the 
inventor  of  hymns  in  our  language.” 

Watts  had  also  to  encounter  an  apparently  impregna¬ 
ble  prejudice  in  the  churches  against  the  use  in  praise  of 
anything  but  metrical  versions  of  the  Psalms.  This  had 
been  a  matter  of  conscience  ever  since  the  Reformation, 
the  idea  being  that  the  Psalms  of  the  Bible  were  inspired 
by  God  to  serve  as  the  hymn  book  qJfHis  Church  for  all 
time,  and  that  hymns  were  “  merely  human  composures,” 
unauthorized  and  unnecessary.  Watts  had  ever  the 
courage  of  his  convictions,  and  he  printed  with  his  hymns 
an  essay,  not  only  denying  that  the  Psalms  were  intended 
as  the  sole  hymn  book  of  the  Christian  Church,  but 
arguing  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  Church  to  make  new 
hymns  that  should  express-Christian  faith  in  the  same 
degree  that  the  Psalms. h^d  expressed  Jewish  faith. 


WHEN  I  SURVEY  THE  WONDROUS  CROSS  1 29 

Partly  by  his  audacity,  partly  by  the  excellence  of  his 
hymns,  partly  also  on  account  of  people’s  weariness  with 
the  old  Psalm  versions,  Watts  won  the  day.  In  dissent¬ 
ing  churches  his  hymns  were  put  into  use  immediately. 
Their  influence  spread  so  widely  and  grew  so  great  that 
in  the  end  it  completely  overcame  the  prejudice  against 
hymns  of  “  human  composure,”  not  only  in  dissenting 
churches  but  in  the  Church  of  England  and  the  Church 
of  Scotland.  In  America  this  prejudice  against  hymns 
was  especially  strong,  but  here,  too,  after  much  contro¬ 
versy,  the  influence  of  Watts  prevailed.  His  Hymns , 
together  with  his  later  Imitations  of  The  Psalms ,  became 
the  familiar  and  loved  hymn  book  of  both  the  Presby¬ 
terian  and  Congregational  Churches,  excluding  all  besides 
for  a  considerable  period.  That  the  hymns  of  this  inno¬ 
vator  should  thus  become  a  badge  and  symbol  of 
orthodoxy  and  conservatism  in  the  churches  that  once 
disputed  his  way  is  an  illustration  of  personal  influence 
not  easy  to  parallel. 

The  first  edition  of  Watts’s  Hymns  has  become  a  very 
rare  book,  only  two  or  three  copies  being  known  to  exist. 
One  of  these  sold  in  London  in  December,  1901,  for  one 
hundred  and  forty  pounds.  This  first  edition  contained 
in  all  two  hundred  and  ten  hymns,  arranged  in  three 
books,  together  with  several  doxologies.  In  the  third 
book,  containing  hymns  to  be  used  in  the  celebration  of 
the  Lord’s  Supper,  “  When  I  Survey  the  Wondrous 
Cross  ”  appeared  as  number  seven.  Within  two  years 
Watts  wrote  one  hundred  and  forty-four  more,  and  added 
them  in  the  second  edition  of  1709;  at  the  same  time 
making  many  alterations  in  the  text  of  those  printed  at 
the  earlier  date. 


9 


I30  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

#0f  the  two  hundred  and  ten  hymns  included  in  the 
first  edition  it  is  probable  that  the  larger  number  were 
written  by  Watts  during  the  years  1695  and  1696,  both 
of  which  he  spent  at  his  father’s  house  in  preparation 
for  his  entrance  into  the  ministry.  There  is  in  exist¬ 
ence  a  letter  from  his  brother  Enoch,  dated  as  early 
as  March,  1700,  urging  the  speedy  publication  of  the 
hymns  for  use  in  public  worship.  One  of  Dr.  Watts  s 
earlier  biographers  gives  the  following  account  of  their 
origin  :  “  Mr.  John  Morgan,  a  minister  of  very  respecta¬ 
ble  character  now  living  at  Romsey,  Hants,  has  sent  me 
the  following  information  :  ‘  The  occasion  of  the  Doctor’s 
hymns  was  this,  as  I  had  the  account  from  his  worthy 
fellow-laborer  and  colleague,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Price,  in  whose 
family  I  dwelt  above  fifty  years  ago.  The  hymns  which 
were  sung  at  the  Dissenting  meeting  at  Southampton 
were  so  little  to  the  gust  of  Mr.  Watts  that  he  could  not 
forbear  complaining  of  them  to  his  father.  The  father 
bid  him  try  what  he  could  do  to  mend  the  matter.  He 
did,  and  had  such  success  in  his  first  essay  that  a  second 
hymn  was  earnestly  desired  of  him,  and  then  a  third, 
and  fourth,  etc.,  till  in  process  of  time  there  was  such  a 
number  of  them  as  to  make  up  a  volume.’  ”  This  may 
be  accepted  as  the  traditional  account  of  the  origin  of 
the  hymns,  and  doubtless  may  be  trusted  so  far  at  least 
as  to  show  that  they  grew  out  of  Watts’s  early  dissatis¬ 
faction  with  the  material  available  for  congregational 
praise,  and  his  determination  to  provide  better  material. 

The  hymn  we  are  now  studying  can  hardly  be  said  to 
have  a  special  history  as  apart  from  the  others  in  Watts’s 
epoch-making  book.  But  there  are  several  things  that 
single  out  this  hymn  from  among  the  rest.  One  is  its 


WHEN  I  SURVEY  THE  WONT  ROUS  CROSS  1 3  I 


extraordinary  excellence.  It  is  not  only  the  best  of  all 
Watts’s  hymns,  but  it  is  placed  by  common  consent 
among  the  greatest  hymns  in  the  language.  •  Another  is 
the  wideness  of  its  use.  The  greater  part  of  Watts’s 


hymns  are  left  behind ;  this  is  sung  in  every  branch  of 
the  English-speaking  Church.  Judged  by  the  number 
of  hymnals  containing  it,  only  one  hymn  is  used  more 
widely — Toplady’s  “  Rock  of  Ages.”  Its  greatest  glory, 
however,  is  the  part  it  has  had  in  the  experience  of 


i32 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Christians.  Only  God  can  know  how  many  living  eyes 
it  has  inspired  with  the  ideal  of  the  cross  of  renunciation, 
how  many  dying  eyes  it  has  comforted  with  the  vision  of 
the  cross  of  hope. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Isaac  Watts  was  born  July  17th,  1674,  at  the  English 
town  of  Southampton,  where  his  father  was  deacon  of  a 
Congregational  church.  It  was  at  a  time  when  the  laws 
against  nonconformity  to  the  state  religion  were  still 
enforced  with  bitterness,  and  he  was  often  carried  in  his 
mother’s  arms  to  the  town  jail,  where  she  visited  his 
father,  imprisoned  for  conscience'  sake.  The  accounts 
of  Watts’s  childhood  tell  of  a  pale,  undersized  child, 
asking  those  about  him  to  “  buy  a  book  ”  before  he  could 
pronounce  the  words  plainly,  beginning  Latin  at  four, 
and  writing  poetry  at  seven.  Perhaps  there  is  an  element 
of  exaggeration  in  such  stories.  The  portraits  of  Di. 
Watts  in  his  ponderous  eighteenth  century  wig  make  it 
hard  enough  to  think  of  him  as  ever  young,  and  these 
accounts  do  not  much  encourage  one  in  that  attempt. 

After  his  school  days  at  Southampton,  a  few  friends, 
impressed  by  his  diligence  and  abilities,  offeied  to  send 
him  to  one  of  the  universities.  But  the  universities  were 
not  open  to  dissenters,  and  among  these  the  young 
scholar  had  determined  to  abide.  He  entered  the  acad¬ 
emy  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Rowe  at  Stoke  Newington, 
and  in  1693  was  admitted  to  the  church  of  which  Mr. 
Rowe  was  pastor.  At  twenty  he  had  completed  the 
ordinary  course  of  study,  and  had  returned  to  his  father  s 
house,  spending  two  years  there  in  study  and  spiritual 
preparation  for  the  ministry.  Afterward  he  lived  for 


OMJC. 


i3  4 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


several  years  with  Sir  John  Hartopp  as  the  tutor  of  his 
son,  carrying  forward  his  own  studies  at  the  same  time. 

On  his  twenty-fourth  birthday  Watts  preached  his 
first  sermon.  He  became  the  assistant,  and  in  1702  was 
ordained  the  successor,  of  Dr.  Isaac  Chauncy,  pastor  of 
the  Independent  Church  meeting  in  Mark  Lane,  London. 
Already,  as  Dr.  Chauncy’s  assistant,  he  had  been  laid 
aside  for  several  months  by  sickness,  and  soon  after  his 
ordination  he  was  seized  with  a  dangerous  illness  which 
left  him  so  weak  as  to  require  an  assistant  of  his  own. 
From  1712  to  1716  he  was  again  laid  aside  by  a  fever 
and  its  consequences,  from  which  he  never  fully  re¬ 
covered.  Happily  he  had  the  gift  of  making  people 
love  him.  His  church  was  always  patient  and  sympa¬ 
thetic,  and  in  his  weakness  and  loneliness  he  was  invited 
to  the  palatial  home  of  Sir  Thomas  Abney,  Theobalds, 
not  far  from  London.  Expecting  to  stay  a  week,  he 
remained  in  the  family  for  the  rest  of  his  life,  thirty-six 
years,  a  loved  and  honored  guest.  Here  he  continued 
his  care  of  his  church,  preaching  when  able  and  engaging 
in  literary  work.  Lady  Abney  watched  over  him  with 
unremitting  care,  shielding  him,  so  far  as  she  could,  from 
anxiety  and  troubles,  until  he  died,  after  a  long  illness, 
November  25th,  1748. 

“  Few  men,”  said  the  great  Dr.  Johnson,  “  have  left 
behind  such  purity  of  character  or  such  monuments  of 
laborious  piety.”  His  published  works  cover  many  de¬ 
partments — geography,  astronomy,  philosophy,  theology, 
practical  religion,  and  poetry.  In  all  of  these  depart¬ 
ments  he  was  accomplished  and  useful.  But  his  own 
estimate,  that  in  completing  his  Psalms  and  Hymns  he 
had  produced  his  greatest  work  for  the  use  of  the 


WHEN  I  SURVEY  THE  WONDROUS  CROSS  1 35 

Church,  is  undoubtedly  true.  Providence  had  a  special 
mission  for  him  in  that  department,  and  through  it  his 
name  and  influence  must  always  endure. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Our  hymns  have  never  had  a  critic  so  severe  as 
the  late  Matthew  Arnold.  But  on  the  last  day  of  his 
life  he  attended  the  Sefton  Park  Presbyterian  Church, 
Liverpool,  of  which  Dr.  Watson  (Ian  Maclaren)  is  pastor. 
The  hymn,  “When  I  Survey  the  Wondrous  Cross,”  was 
sung.  Coming  down,  afterward,  from  his  bedroom  in  his 
brother-in-law’s  house  to  luncheon,  Mr.  Arnold  was  heard 
softly  repeating  to  himself  the  opening  lines.  At  luncheon 
he  spoke  of  it  as  the  greatest  hymn  in  the  language. 
Afterward  he  went  out,  and  in  ten  minutes  was  dead. 
Does  not  such  an  incident  (attested  by  Dr.  Watson)  show 
the  importance  of  literary  merit  in  hymns  ?  It  recalls 
the  appeal  of  John  Wesley  for  hymns  “such  as  would 
sooner  provoke  a  critic  to  turn  Christian,  than  a  Chris¬ 
tian  to  turn  critic.” 

(2)  This  hymn  bore  the  title :  Crucifixion  to  the  World 
by  the  Cross  of  Christ.  Can  you  give  the  verse  from 
St.  Paul  on  which  it  is  based? 

(3)  In  the  original  hymn  there  was  a  fourth  verse, 

reading  as  follows  : — 

“  His  dying  Crimson  like  a  Robe 

Spreads  o’er  his  Body  on  the  Tree, 

Then  am  I  dead  to  all  the  Globe, 

And  all  the  Globe  is  dead  to  me.” 

This  verse  was  omitted  from  The  Hymnal ,  and  for 
that  omission  its  editor  was  criticised.  Is  it  better  to 


136 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


pmit  or  retain  the  verse,  and  why  ?  In  his  second  edition 
Dr.  Watts  printed  this  verse  within  brackets,  signifying 
that  it  might  “  be  left  out  in  singing  without  disturbing  the 
sense.”  That  fact  does  not,  however,  settle  the  question. 
The  frequent  omission  of  this  verse  by  editors  is  ex¬ 
plained  by  Canon  Twells,  in  a  sermon  upon  the  hymn, 
in  this  way :  “  The  rather  awkward  use  of  the  word 
‘  globe  ’  for  ‘world,’  to  meet  the  exigencies  of  rhyme, 
has,  I  suppose,  vetoed  this  verse.”  Are  there  better 
reasons  ? 

(4)  Dr.  Watts  very  carefully  revised  the  text  of  his 
hymns  for  the  second  edition.  In  this  hymn  the  only 
change  was  in  the  second  line,  which  originally  read : — 

“  Where  the  young  Prince  of  Glory  dy’d.” 

Was  there  sufficent  reason  for  this  change  ? 


XIII 

O  STILL  IN  ACCENTS  SWEET  AND  STRONG 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

i  O  still  in  accents  sweet  and  strong 
Sounds  forth  the  ancient  word, 

“  More  reapers  for  white  harvest  fields, 
More  laborers  for  the  Lord.” 


2  We  hear  the  call;  in  dreams  no  more 
In  selfish  ease  we  lie, 

But,  girded  for  our  Father’s  work, 

Go  forth  beneath  His  sky. 


3  Where  prophets’  word,  and  martyrs’  blood, 
And  prayers  of  saints  were  sown, 

We,  to  their  labors  entering  in, 

Would  reap  where  they  have  strown. 


4  O  Thou  whose  call  our  hearts  has  stirred, 

To  do  Thy  will  we  come  ; 

Thrust  in  our  sickles  at  Thy  word, 

And  bear  our  harvest  home. 

Rev.  Samuel  Longfellow,  1864 

Note. — The  text  is  taken  from  Hymns  of  the  Spirit ,  which  Mr.  Longfellow 
compiled,  in  conjunction  with  his  friend,  the  Rev.  Samuel  John¬ 
son. 

137 


•38 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  author  of  the  hymn 

In  all  the  editions  of  the  poetical  works  of  Henry  W. 
Longfellow  there  is  found  among  the  earlier  poems  one 
entitled  “  Hymn  for  my  Brother’s  Ordination.”  It  is  this 
brother,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Longfellow,  who  is  the  author 
of  the  hymn  now  to  be  studied. 

The  Longfellow  family  lived  in  Portland,  Maine.  The 
father  was  a  greatly  respected  lawyer  there,  and  sur¬ 
rounded  his  family  with  comfort  and  refinement.  The 
square  brick  house  in  which  they  lived,  and  in  which 
Samuel,  the  younger  of  the  brothers,  was  born  June 
1 8th,  1819,  is  still  standing,  though  now  in  the  business 
quarter  of  the  town. 

Just  as  the  older  brother  gravitated  naturally  toward 
a  literary  life,  so  the  younger  brother  gravitated  toward 
the  ministry.  From  Harvard,  where  he  was  a  classmate 
and  close  friend  of  Edward  Everett  Hale,  he  was  gradu¬ 
ated  in  1839;  after  a  few  years  spent  in  teaching 
and  study,  entered  the  divinity  school  of  that  university, 
being  graduated  in  1846.  It  was  while  a  student  there 
that  he  and  another  friend,  Samuel  Johnson,  undertook 
to  compile  a  new  hymn  book  for  Unitarian  churches — a 
somewhat  audacious  venture  for  two  theological  students. 
The  book  appeared  in  1846,  under  the  name  of  The  Book 
of  Hymns ;  though  Theodore  Parker,  who  was  one  of 
the  first  to  use  it  in  his  services,  was  wont  to  call  it 
“  The  Book  of  Sams.” 

The  book  was  very  remarkable  for  literary  merit.  It 
broke  away  from  the  old  tradition  of  dull  and  heavy 
hymns,  and  brought  before  the  churches  many  that  were 
fresh  and  beautiful.  Among  these  were  “  Lead,  Kindly 


o  STILL  IN  ACCENTS  SWEET  AND  STRONG  1 39 


THE  LONGFELLOW  HOUSE,  PORTLAND 


“  Light,”  which  the  editors  had  found  in  a  newspaper,  and 
many  of  the  hymns  of  Mr.  Whittier  and  of  other  American 
writers.  The  book  had  a  great  influence  far  beyond  the 
bounds  of  those  who  shared  the  peculiar  religious  beliefs 
of  its  young  editors. 


140 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Mr.  Longfellow  was  ordained  as  a  Unitarian  minister 
in  1848,  and  became  pastor  at  Fall  River,  Massachusetts, 
and  afterward  at  Brooklyn.  After  a  long  interval  Mr. 
Longfellow  in  1878  began  his  last  pastorate  at  the  Uni- 
-  tarian  Church  of  Germantown,  a  Philadelphia  suburb. 
The  whole  period  of  his  settled  pastoral  life  was  less  than 
fifteen  years.  Together  with  a  lack  of  physical  robust¬ 
ness,  there  was  a  craving  for  the  quiet  life  and  a  shrinking 
from  formality  and  routine.  Resigning  his  charge  in 
1 882,  he  took  up  his  residence  in  the  famous  “  Craigie 
House  ”  in  Cambridge  that  had  been  the  home  of  his 
brother,  the  poet ;  giving  up  his  closing  years  to  writing 
that  brother’s  biography.  Mr.  Longfellow  died  October 
3rd,  1892,  and  was  buried  from  the  old  home  at  Portland. 

No  brothers  were  ever  more  devoted  than  these.  But 
at  the  same  time  there  are  disadvantages  in  being  the 
younger  brother  of  a  famous  poet;  and  while  Samuel 
Longfellow  had  the  poetic  temperament,  and  was  not 
lacking  in  the  poetic  gift,  and  was  a  prominent  man  in 
Unitarian  circles,  it  has  happened  nevertheless  that  the 
light  of  his  fame  has  burned,  and  always  must  burn,  with 
a  paler  flame,  because  nature  set  it  alongside  of  the  far 
brighter  blaze  of  his  brother’s  renown.  To  most  readers 
Samuel  Longfellow  is  known  simply  as  the  poet’s  brother 
and  biographer.  Yet  he  was  in  all  respects  a  man  worth 
knowing  for  his  own  sake :  “  full  of  enthusiasm  of  the 
quiet,  deep,  interior  kind;  worshipful,  devout,  reverent ; 
a  deep  believer  in  the  human  heart,  in  its  affections ; 
having  a  perfect  trust  in  the  majesty  of  conscience,  a 
supreme  trust  in  God  and  in  the  laws  of  the  world ;  a 
man  thoroughly  well  informed,  used  to  the  best  people, 
used  to  the  best  books  and  the  best  music,  with  the  soul 


O  STILL  IN  ACCENTS  SWEET  A  AN  STRONG  141 


“  of  a  poet  in  him  and  the  heart  of  a  saint ;  a  man  of  a 
deeply,  earnestly  consecrated  will ;  simple  as  a  little 
child;  perpetually  singing  little  ditties  as  he  went  about 
in  the  world,  humming  his  little  heart-songs  as  he  went 


REV.  SAMUEL  LONGFELLOW 

about  in  the  street,  wherever  you  met  him.”  “A  very 
perfit  gentil  knight  ”  was  the  old  phrase  applied  to  him  by 
Colonel  Higginson. 

And  yet  this  sympathetic  pastor,  this  sunny-hearted 
gentleman,  all  the  motives  of  whose  life  were  high  and 
spiritual,  who  lived  and  did  his  work  within  a  perpetual 
atmosphere  of  calm  and  sweet  serenity,  came  gradually 
to  assume  an  attitude  toward  Christianity  that  only  the 


142 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


gentleness  of  his  heart  and  his  pervading  charity  saved 
from  being  obstructive.  Mr.  Longfellow’s  religious  in¬ 
heritance  was  that  of  the  temper  and  beliefs  of  the  older 
Unitarianism,  and  with  this  point  of  view  the  hymn  book 
of  his  seminary  days  corresponds.  His  point  of  view  ap¬ 
pears  in  his  choice  of  hymns,  which  freely  recognize  the 
supernatural  character  of  Christ.  It  appears  in  the  very 
grouping  of  the  hymns  under  such  main  heads  as  “Jesus 
Christ,”  “  Communion  Hymns,”  “  Christianity  and  the 
Christian  Life.”  How  far  that  point  of  view  was  left 
behind  as  Mr.  Longfellow’s  life  advanced  is  revealed 
nowhere  more  plainly  than  in  a  second  hymn  book  com¬ 
piled  in  the  early  sixties  by  the  same  two  life-long  friends, 
and  published  at  Boston  in  1864  as  Hymns  of  the  Spirit. 
From  this  later  book  all  hymns  “  which  attributed  a 
peculiar  quality  and  special  authority  to  Christianity,  and 
recognized  a  supernatural  element  in  the  personality 
of  Jesus,”  were  excluded.  Even  the  hymn,  “  Christ  to 
the  Young  Man  Said,”  composed  for  his  ordination  by 
his  famous  brother  was  omitted  because  “  he  would  not 
by  that  one  name  disturb  the  simplicity  of  his  faith  in  the 
one  Source  of  the  soul’s  higher  life.”  The  Communion 
Hymns  were  left  out,  as  the  rite  itself  had  disappeared 
from  Mr.  Longfellow’s  ministry.  “  Christianity  ”  appears 
only  as  the  heading  of  a  group  of  seventeen  hymns  out 
of  a  total  of  seven  hundred  and  seventeen.  The  view¬ 
point  of  the  book  was  that  which  its  editor  had  declared 
his  own  to  be — that  of  universal  religion  of  which  Chris¬ 
tianity  was  only  an  illustration,  of  theism  as  distinguished 
from  Christianity. 

If  we  are  to  take  Mr.  Longfellow  at  his  word,  and 
regard  him  as  a  theist  rather  than  a  Christian,  there 


O  STILL  LN  ACCENTS  SWEET  AND  STRONG  1 43 


remains  at  least  the  satisfaction  of  recognizing  the  strik¬ 
ing  moral  coincidences  between  his  conception  of  univer¬ 
sal  religion  and  our  own  of  Christianity.  There  remains 
the  greater  satisfaction  of  finding  in  his  character  and 
ways  so  many  illustrations  of  what  Christianity  has  done 
for  life.  But  among  those  who  care  for  Mr.  Longfellow’s 
hymns  there  will  be  very  many  who  prefer  to  think  of 
this  free  spirit  as  poet  rather  than  as  theologian.  For  the 
latter  office  he  was  indeed  hardly  qualified  either  by  his 
mental  bent  or  his  habits  of  study.  His  was  a  mind  of 
the  sentimental  cast,  which  sincerely  loved  truth  and 
sought  to  find  it,  but  in  reality  rejoiced  more  in  a  sense 
of  unfettered  freedom  in  the  search  itself  than  in  any 
logical  coherence  of  the  beliefs  that  rewarded  the  search. 

The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

Mr.  Longfellow  wrote  many  hymns,  most  of  which 
were  included  in  Hymns  of  the  Spirit .  This  hymn,  beau¬ 
tiful  and  heartfelt  as  it  is,  has  no  striking  features  in  its 
history.  There  is  no  account  of  its  origin  anywhere 
printed,  and  those  who  have  written  of  it  have  simply 
said  that  it  was  composed  for  Hymns  of  the  Spirit  in  1 864. 
The  present  writer,  however,  has  in  his  possession  an 
autograph  letter  of  Mr.  Longfellow’s  in  which  he  states 
that  “  the  hymn  was  originally  written  to  be  sung  by  a 
class  graduating  from  the  divinity  school  at  Cambridge.” 
He  does  not  say  in  what  year,  and  most  probably  did 
not  remember,  since  his  niece,  who  published  a  volume 
of  his  hymns  after  his  death,  was  not  able  to  give  the 
date  of  this  one. 

The  hymn  is  becoming  very  popular  in  this  country ; 
abroad  it  is  less  used  than  Mr.  Longfellow’s  beautiful 


144  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

evening  hymn,  “  Again,  as  Evening’s  Shadow  Falls,” 
and  his  “  Holy  Spirit,  Truth  Divine”  ( The  Hymnal ,  Nos. 
22,  279).  It  takes  a  great  many  years  for  a  hymn  to  get 
into  general  use  throughout  all  English-speaking  coun¬ 
tries,  and  very  few  hymns  attain  such  an  honor.  Whether 
this  or  any  of  Mr.  Longfellow’s  hymns  shall  gain  such  a 
distinction  can  hardly  be  foretold. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  There  is  still  some  difference  of  opinion  in  regard 
to  the  propriety  of  the  use  by  Orthodox  churches  of 
hymns  by  those  writers  of  “  liberal  ”  or  “  radical  ”  opin¬ 
ions  whom  we  generally  group  together  under  the  term 
“  Unitarian.”  The  following  opinions  are  set  down  here, 
not  for  the  purpose  of  settling  that  question,  but  rather 
as  laying  the  ground  for  the  discussion  of  it. 

When  one  comes  to  think  about  it,  there  is  nothing 

singular  in  the  fact  that  a  Unitarian  should  write  hymns 

<2> 

that  prove  acceptable  to  Christians  who  have  no  share 
whatever  in  the  beliefs  peculiar  to  Unitarianism.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  it  is  not  the  purpose  of  every  hymn  to 
glorify  the  nature  of  our  Lord  as  divine.  Some  hymns, 
for  example,  celebrate  God’s  fatherhood  or  providence, 
some  the  work  of  the  Spirit  in  our  hearts,  some  are  of 
heaven,  some  of  the  moral  life,  and  some  of  missions. 
On  these  and  other  subjects  there  is  very  much  ground 
held  in  common  by  all  people  of  reverent  mind  and 
religious  faith.  There  are,  no  doubt,  hymns  written 
by  Dr.  Holmes,  Mr.  Longfellow,  and  other  “  liberals,” 
which  contain  their  peculiar  personal  beliefs,  some  that 
even  sound  a  note  of  protest  against  other  peoples’ 
beliefs ;  and  those  are  passed  by,  as  a  matter  of  course, 


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AUTOGRAPH  VERSES 


146  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

by  churches  which  profess  the  Orthodox  faith.  But 
the  fact  of  their  writing  such  sectarian  hymns  does 
not  spoil  the  quality  of  such  of  their  hymns  as  are  not 
sectarian,  but  are  simply  religious.  Is  it  not  properly  a 
matter  of  rejoicing  that  there  are  so  many  hymns  that 
religious  people  of  all  shades  of  belief  can  agree  to  love 
and  to  sing  ? 

(2)  It  has  been  said  before  now  that  the  best  hymns 
are  those  which  use  most  freely  the  thoughts  and  even 
the  language  of  the  Bible.  If  that  is  true,  the  hymn 
of  Mr.  Longfellow  would  not  need  to  be  excluded  from 
the  best  hymns,  for  it  is  Scriptural  to  a  somewhat  un¬ 
usual  degree.  From  what  passages  in  the  gospel  are 
the  thoughts  and  some  of  the  phrases  of  this  hymn 
taken  ? 


XIV 


JESUS  CHRIST  IS  RISEN  TO-DAY 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  Jesus  Christ  is  risen  to-day, 

Our  triumphant  holy  day, 

Who  did  once,  upon  the  cross, 

Suffer  to  redeem  our  loss. 

Alleluia ! 

2  Hymns  of  praise  then  let  us  sing 
Unto  Christ  our  heavenly  King 
Who  endured  the  cross  and  grave, 

Sinners  to  redeem  and  save. 

Alleluia  ! 

3  But  the  pains  which  He  endured 
Our  salvation  have  procured ; 

Now  above  the  sky  He’s  King, 

Where  the  angels  ever  sing. 

Alleluia  ! 

4  Sing  we  to  our  God  above 
Praise  eternal  as  His  love  ; 

Praise  Him,  all  ye  heavenly  host, 

Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost. 

Alleluia  ! 

[A  composite  hymn] 

Note. — The  text  is  that  printed  in  connection  with  early  nineteenth  century 
issues  of  Tate  and  Brady’s  Psalms ,  except  that  some  (possibly 
all)  of  these  issues  read  “hath”  instead  of  “  have  ”  in  the 
second  line  of  the  third  verse  ;  treating  “pains  ”  as  a  singular — 
a  usage  not  without  precedents. 


J47 


148 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

There  are  a  few  familiar  hymns  which  can  best  be 
described  as  gradual  growths  rather  than  as  the  ciea- 
tions  of  an  author  s  mind.  Some  lines  or  verses  have 
served  for  the  nucleus  of  a  hymn  ;  these  have  been 
reshaped  and  added  to  time  and  again  by  the  hands  of 
successive  editors,  and  in  that  way  the  hymn  has  attained 
the  form  we  know.  Poetry  of  a  high  order  could  not 
be  made  by  such  a  process;  but  of  these  composite 
hymns  the  few  that  survive  are  such,  to  say  the  least  of 
them,  as  have  proved  both  serviceable  and  attractive. 
One  of  the  best  of  them  is  our  Easter  hymn,  apart  from 
which  the  services  of  that  day  would  hardly  seem  com¬ 
plete.  And  the  history  of  its  making  is  not  without  an 

interest  of  its  own. 

For  the  earliest  form  of  the  hymn  we  must  go  back 
to  the  fourteenth  century.  There  is  now  in  Munich  a 
manuscript  of  that  date  containing  an  Easter  caiol  in 
Latin,  which  reads  as  follows  : — 

“  Surrexit  Christus  hodie 
huraano  pro  solamine.  allel. 

Mortem  qui  passus  corpore 
miserrimo  pro  homine.  all. 

Mulieres  ad  tumulum 
dona  fernnt  aromatum.  all. 

Album  videntes  angelum 
annunciantem  gaudium  :  all. 

Discipulis  hoc  dicite, 

quod  surrexit  rex  gloriae.  all. 

Paschali  pleno  gaudio 
benedicanrus  domino,  all.” 


JESUS  CHRIST  IS  RISEN  TO- DA  Y 


I49 


Other  manuscripts  of  the  same  hymn  exist,  having  ad¬ 
ditional  verses.  But  we  are  specially  concerned  only 
with  the  first  and  second  couplets,  which  are  in  all  the 
manuscripts.  For  these  two  couplets  proved  to  be  the 
nucleus  round  which  our  hymn  was  to  grow. 

The  first  stage  in  the  growth  of  the  hymn  is  the  turn¬ 
ing  of  that  Latin  carol  into  English,  four  centuries  later. 
The  illustration  here  given  is  the  facsimile  of  one  page 
from  a  book  printed  in  London,  1708,  by  J.  Walsh.  It 
had  this  title  : —  . 

“  Lyra  Davidica,  or  a  Collection  of  Divine  Songs  and 
Hymns,  partly  New  Composed,  partly  Translated  from 
the  High  German  and  Latin  Hymns ;  and  set  to  easy  and 
pleasant  Tunes.” 

Comparing  the  words  in  the  facsimile  with  the  first  and 
second  couplets  of  the  Latin,  it  is  readily  seen  that  they 
are  a  translation  of  them,  and  not  very  different  from  the 
first  verse  of  our  present  hymn.  The  remainder  of  the 
carol  follows  on  the  next  page  of  the  book,  the  whole 
reading  as  follows  : — 

“Jesus  Christ  is  Risen  to  day  Halle-Halleluiak 
Our  triumphant  Holyday 
Who  so  lately  on  the  Cross 
Suffer’d  to  redeem  our  loss. 

“  Hast  ye  females  from  your  fright 
Take  to  Galilee  your  flight 
To  his  sad  disciples  say 
Jesus  Christ  is  risen  to  day. 


“  In  our  Paschal  joy  and  feast 
Let  the  Lord  of  life  be  blest 
Let  the  Holy  Trine  be  prais’d 
And  thankful  hearts  to  heaven  be  rais’d.” 


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A  PAGE  FROM  “LYRA  DAVIDICA 


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JESUS  CHRIST  IS  RISEN  TO- DA  Y  1 5 1 

We  recognize  also  the  “  easy  and  pleasant  tune,  ”  to  which 
we  still  sing  our  Easter  hymn,  harmonized  in  two  parts, 
the  air  and  bass.  The  tune  seems  to  make  its  first  ap¬ 
pearance  in  this  book.  Most  likely  it  was  composed  for 
these  words,  but  nobody  knows.  In  many  hymnals  the 
statement  still  continues  to  be  made  that  Dr.  Worgan 
composed  the  tune,  the  fact  that  he  was  not  yet  born  not 
seeming  to  make  any  difference.  Nothing  more  is  known 
of  the  translation  than  of  the  tune.  Who  wrote  the 
English  words,  who  edited  the  book,  for  whose  use  the 
book  was  intended — on  none  of  these  interesting  ques¬ 
tions  is  there  any  light  whatever.  But  the  fact  remains 
that,  in  1708  we  got  a  first  verse  and  also  a  tune  for  our 
Easter  hymn,  though  not  as  yet  in  just  the  form  we 
know. 

In  1749  or  early  in  175°  J°hn  Arnold,  a  musician 
living  at  Great  Warley,  in  Essex,  published  the  second 
edition  of  a  collection  of  tunes  called  The  Compleat 
Psalmodist.  In  this  book  the  same  tune  appears  again, 
but  the  hymn  has  been  made  over.  Only  the  four  lines 
of  the  translated  carol  from  Lyra  Davidica  remain. 
These  are  altered,  and  there  are  now  added  two  verses 
entirely  new.  The  hymn  in  the  earliest  edition  of  this 
book  seen  by  the  present  writer  reads  as  follows : — 

“Jesus  Christ  is  ris’n  to-Day.  Hallelujah. 

Our  triumphant  Holiday 
Who  did  once  upon  the  Cross 
Suffer  to  redeem  our  Loss. 

“  Hymns  of  praises  let  us  sing 
Unto  Christ  our  heav’nly  King 
Who  endur’d  the  Cross  and  Grave 
Sinners  to  redeem  and  save. 


152 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  But  the  pain  that  he  endur’d 
Our  Salvation  has  procur’d 
Now  above  the  Sky  he’s  King 
Where  the  Angels  ever  sing.” 

This  is  substantially  the  modern  form  of  the  hymn.  And 
here  again  there  is  no  clue  as  to  the  authorship  of  the 
new  verses. 

Not  much  now  remained  to  be  done  to  the  hymn.  It 
needed  a  little  polishing,  and  it  needed  to  have  a  place 
made  for  it  among  the  hymns  sung  in  church.  For 
these  it  waited  until  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  At  that  time  the  Church  of  England  was  sing¬ 
ing  metrical  versions  of  the  Psalms.  Tate  and  Brady’s 
version  was  commonly  bound  in  with  the  Prayer  Books. 
Toward  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century  a  few  hymns 
had  appeared  at  the  end  of  the  Psalms.  How  they  got 
there  is  not  known.  It  is  thought  likely  that  some 
printer,  with  the  free  ways  of  a  dissenter,  saw  fit  to  fill 
up  a  few  blank  leaves  left  over  at  the  end  of  a  Prayer 
Book  with  hymns,  and  that  he  made  his  own  selection. 
Certain  it  is  that  the  hymns  appeared  there  and  that  they 
appeared  without  authority.  It  is  equally  certain  that 
they  kept  their  place  in  later  editions  of  the  Prayer  Book 
and  were  sung  in  the  services.  They  not  only  stayed, 
but  increased  in  number.  Some  time  early  in  the  nine¬ 
teenth  century,  at  a  date  not  yet  fixed,  our  Easter  hymn 
was  added  to  the  little  group.  The  changes  in  the  text 
were  not  many,  and  each  change  was  for  the  better. 
This  final  form  of  the  hymn  corresponds  to  the  first  three 
verses  as  printed  at  the  head  of  this  Study. 

In  later  years  some  editor,  thinking  that  the  hymn 
needed  a  conclusion,  added  a  doxology  by  the  Rev. 


JESUS  CHRIST  IS  RISEN  TO-DAY  I  53 

Charles  Wesley,  originally  printed  in  1740.  The  dox- 
ology  (the  fourth  verse)  suits  the  hymn  and  may  now  be 
looked  upon  as  part  of  it.  And  the  story  of  the  making 
of  the  hymn,  like  the  hymn  itself,  ends  with  this  doxology. 
It  was  a  long  evolution,  a  somewhat  curious  history. 
Perhaps  its  most  curious  feature,  amounting  to  something 
almost  like  an  air  of  mystery,  is  the  veil  of  anonymity 
that  is  not  once  lifted  through  all  the  five  hundred  years. 
Many  hands  have  wrought  to  bring  the  materials  into 
shape,  and  of  all  these  hands  not  one  can  be  associated 
with  a  human  name  or  presence. 

The  popularity  of  the  hymn  is  readily  explained.  It 
appeared  at  a  time  when  suitable  Easter  hymns  were 
sadly  lacking,  already  provided  with  a  stirring  melody. 
And  both  hymn  and  tune  have  kept  their  place  because 
they  express,  somewhat  quaintly  but  none  the  less  fitly, 
the  gratitude  and  gladness  of  the  Christian  heart  in  view 
of  Christ’s  resurrection. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Are  the  Easter  hymns  as  a  class  equal  in  merit 
and  attractiveness  to  the  Christmas  hymns  as  a  class  ? 

(2)  In  the  act  of  singing  this  hymn  the  correct  render¬ 
ing  of  the  tune  makes  such  demands  upon  one’s  attention 
that  the  words  deserve  a  quiet  study  apart.  Does  any 
hymn  set  forth  more  appealingly  the  mingled  triumph 
and  pathos  of  the  resurrection  ?  Notice  the  alleluias 
which  interrupt  the  very  recital  of  Christ’s  pains. 

(3)  Much  has  been  said  in  favor  of  keeping  up  the 
association  of  a  particular  hymn  with  “  the  tune  to  which 
it  has  always  been  sung.”  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  num¬ 
ber  of  standard  hymns  that  have  always  or  even  generally 


154  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

been  sung  to  special  tunes  of  their  own  is  quite  small. 
In  this  matter  we  are  likely  to  think  that  the  association 
familiar  to  ourselves  has  been  a  more  general  usage  than 
on  inquiry  proves  to  be  the  case.  And  even  though  a 
hymn  has  generally  been  sung  to  a  particular  tune,  it 
may  happen  that  the  tune  has  been  outgrown  and  the 
hymn  thereby  fallen  into  unfortunate  neglect ;  or  that 
the  hymn  has  outlived  its  usefulness  while  its  tune  is 
worthy  of  longer  use  if  set  to  better  words.  In  such  a 
case  a  change  of  the  association  would  seem  desirable. 
But  in  a  case  such  as  this,  where  tune  and  words  are 
both  worthy,  have  come  into  the  world  together,  and 
have  been  sung  together  very  generally  and  with  great 
satisfaction,  is  there  not  a  certain  profit  as  well  as  pro¬ 
priety  in  keeping  that  association  undisturbed  ? 

There  is  indeed  need  of  a  certain  watchfulness  on  our 
part  to  make  sure  that  we  do  not  lose  the  words  of  this 
hymn  altogether  out  of  our  hymn  books.  The  tune 
goes  very  well  to  Wesley’s  Easter  hymn  in  the  same 
metre.  And  some  recent  compilers,  pressed  as  they  are 
for  space,  and  conscious  of  a  general  desire  that  the 
number  of  hymns  be  reduced,  have  sought  to  relieve  the 
situation  by  setting  this  tune  to  Wesley’s  words.  Perhaps 
they  thought  we  would  not  notice.  But  they  do  us  an  inj  us- 
tice.  No  other  words  have  just  the  Easter  flavor  of  these. 

(4)  The  facts  set  forth  in  this  Study  are  put  in  con¬ 
densed  form  into  the  note  underneath  the  hymn  in  The 
Hymnal  (No.  244).  If  any  one  would  take  the  trouble 
to  work  out  the  note  in  the  light  of  the  Study  he  would 
be  in  the  way  of  understanding  those  Hymnal  notes  on 
the  history  and  text  of  the  hymns.  Many  people  find 
difficulty  in  following  such  condensed  statements. 


XV 


A  MIGHTY  FORTRESS  IS  OUR  GOD 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  A  mighty  Fortress  is  our  God, 

A  Bulwark  never  failing ; 

Our  Helper  He  amid  the  flood 
Of  mortal  ills  prevailing : 

For  still  our  ancient  foe 
Doth  seek  to  work  us  woe  ; 

His  craft  and  power  are  great, 

And,  armed  with  cruel  hate, 

On  earth  is  not  his  equal. 

2  Did  we  in  our  own  strength  confide, 

Our  striving  would  be  losing  ; 

Were  not  the  right  man  on  our  side, 

The  man  of  God’s  own  choosing  : 

Dost  ask  who  that  may  be  ? 

Christ  Jesus,  it  is  He  ; 

Lord  Sabaoth  His  Name, 

From  age  to  age  the  same, 

And  He  must  win  the  battle. 

3  And  though  this  world,  with  devils  filled, 

Should  threaten  to  undo  us  ; 

We  will  not  fear,  for  God  hath  willed 
His  truth  to  triumph  through  us  : 

The  prince  of  darkness  grim, — 

We  tremble  not  for  him  ; 

His  rage  we  can  endure, 

For  lo  !  his  doom  is  sure, 

One  little  word  shall  fell  him. 


155 


156 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  That  word  above  all  earthly  powers, 

No  thanks  to  them,  abideth  ; 

The  Spirit  and  the  gifts  are  ours 
Through  Him  who  with  us  sideth  : 

Let  goods  and  kindred  go, 

This  mortal  life  also  ; 

The  body  they  may  kill  : 

God’s  truth  abideth  still, 

His  kingdom  is  for  ever. 

Rev.  Martin  Luther,  (about)  1528 
Translated  by  Rev.  Frederic  Henry  Hedge,  1852 

NOTE. — The  text  is  taken  from  Hedge  and  Huntington’s  Hymns  for  the 

Church  of  Christ. 


The  story  of  the  hymn 

The  greatest  scene  of  Luther’s  career  was  his  brave 
stand  before  the  Diet  of  Worms,  on  the  17th  of  April, 
1521.  It  was  on  the  way  thither,  when  warned  by 
Spalatin  against  entering  the  city,  that  Luther  wrote 
back :  “  Were  there  as  many  devils  in  Worms  as  there 
are  tiles  on  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  I  would  go  in.” 
Perhaps  the  occurrence  of  this  same  sentiment  in  the 
third  verse  of  Luther’s  hymn,  “  Em’  Feste  Burg  ist  Unser 
Gott,”  is  what  has  led  so  many  writers  to  say  that  the 
hymn  also  was  written  on  that  journey  to  Worms. 
Picturesque  as  it  may  be  thus  to  connect  the  great 
hymn  with  the  great  event,  the  claim  is  not  supported 
by  any  actual  evidence.  Three  years  afterward,  in  1524, 
Luther  printed  his  earlier  hymns,  but  this  is  not  among 
them.  One  naturally  concludes  that  it  had  not  been 
written. 

Six  other  dates  and  occasions  for  the-  origin  of  the 
hymn  have  been  fixed  upon,  each  of  them  with  con¬ 
siderable  confidence.  No  one  could  seem  more  sure  of 


' 

S  A  '  v. 


k 

Hk. . I _ _ 


'^Tlrin  /*<*f&<%**m*  1 

/»u^  L **** 


158  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

anything  than  is  Merle  d’Aubigne,  the  brilliant  historian 
of  the  Reformation,  that  Luther  wrote  the  hymn  while 
with  the  Elector  John  of  Saxony,  who  was  on  his  way 
to  the  Diet  of  Augsburg  in  1530.  That  writer  pictures 
the  very  scene.  “John,”  he  says,  “  began  his  journey 
on  the  3rd  April,  with  one  hundred  and  sixty  horse¬ 
men,  clad  in  rich  scarlet  cloaks,  embroidered  with  gold. 
Every  man  was  aware  of  the  dangers  that  threatened 
the  Elector,  and  hence  many  in  his  escort  marched  with 
downcast  eyes  and  sinking  hearts.  But  Luther,  full  of 
faith,  revived  the  courage  of  his  friends  by  composing, 
and  singing  with  his  fine  voice  that  beautiful  hymn,  since 
become  so  famous:  Eiri  Fcste  Burg  ist  Unser  Gott.” 
Heie  again  is  a  picturesque  origin  found  for  the  hymn, 
but  one  improbable  on  its  face,  and  contradicted  by  the 
fact  that  at  the  time  referred  to  Luther’s  hymn  had 
already  appealed  in  piint.  Various  monographs  have 
been  published  advocating  other  dates  and  occasions. 
Undeterred  by  these,  Scherer,  the  recent  historian  of 
German  Literature,  states  with  entire  confidence  that  the 
hymn  was  written  in  October,  1527,  at  the  approach  of 
the  plague.  Luther  s  biographer,  Julius  Kostlin,  in  the 
later  editions  of  the  Life ,  accepts  that  date  as  probably 
correct.  And  with  that  probability  we  must  rest.  The 
actual  evidence  in  the  matter  is  the  appearance  of  the 
hymn  in  piint.  Some  years  ago  it  was  found  in  a  muti¬ 
lated  copy  of  a  Wittenberg  hymn  book  of  1529;  and 
moie  lately  report  was  made  of  its  discovery  in  an 
eailier  issue,  dating  apparently  from  February,  1528. 
It  was  already  set  to  the  glorious  tune,  believed  by  many 
to  be  composed  by  Luther  himself,  to  which  it  has  been 
sung  ever  since.  The  best  opinion  of  the  present  time 


A  MIGHTY  FORTRESS  IS  OUR  GOD  1 59 

is  that  not  any  of  the  tunes  furnished  by  Luther  were 
original  compositions,  but  were  rather  drawn  from  sacred 
or  popular  sources.  That  of  “  Ein’  Feste  Burg,”  it  is 
claimed,  was  developed  from  an  old  Gregorian  melody. 

Such  a  hymn,  with  such  a  tune,  spread  quickly,  as 
may  well  be  believed ;  “  quickly,  as  if  the  angels  had 
been  the  carriers,”  one  enthusiastic  writer  has  said.  But 
they  were  men  and  not  angels  who  spread  Luther’s 
hymn  of  faith  and  courage  from  heart  to  heart  and  from 
lip  to  lip.  It  thrilled  them  like  a  trumpet  blast,  en¬ 
couraging  the  faint-hearted  and  nerving  the  brave  to 
fight  the  battle  of  the  Lord.  It  was,  as  Heine  said,  the 
Marseillaise  of  the  Reformation.  It  was  sung  at  Augs¬ 
burg  during  the  Diet,  and  in  all  the  churches  of  Saxony, 
often  against  the  protest  of  the  priest.  It  was  sung  in 
the  streets ;  and,  so  heard,  comforted  the  hearts  of 
Melanchthon,  Jonas,  and  Cruciger,  as  they  entered 
Weimar,  when  banished  from  Wittenberg  in  1 547.  It 
was  sung  by  poor  Protestant  emigrants  on  their  way 
into  exile,  and  by  martyrs  at  their  death.  It  is  woven 
into  the  web  of  the  history  of  Reformation  times,  and  it 
became  the  true  national  hymn  of  Protestant  Germany. 
Gustavus  Adolphus  ordered  it  sung  by  his  army  before 
the  battle  of  Leipzig,  in  1631,  and  on  the  field  of  that 
battle  it  was  repeated,  more  than  two  centuries  after¬ 
ward,  by  the  throng  assembled  at  the  jubilee  of  the 
Gustavus  Adolphus  Association.  Again,  it  was  the 
battle  hymn  of  his  army  at  Lutzen,  in  1632,  in  which  the 
King  was  slain,  but  his  army  won  the  victory.  It  has 
had  a  part  in  countless  celebrations  commemorating  the 
men  and  events  of  the  Reformation  ;  and  its  first  line  is 
engraved  on  the  base  of  Luther’s  monument  at  Witten- 


i6o 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


berg.  And  it  is  dear  still  to  the  German  people ;  one  of 
the  hymns  lodged  in  their  memories  and  hearts,  ready  for 
the  occasion.  An  imperishable  hymn !  not  polished  and 
artistically  wrought,  but  rugged  and  strong  like  Luther 
himself,  whose  very  words  seem  like  deeds. 

Among  Luther’s  hymns  (some  thirty-six  in  all)  this 
occupies  the  supreme  place,  because  it  is  the  fullest 
expression  of  what  he  was  as  a  man  and  as  a  reformer. 
“  It  is  a  true  picture  of  his  simple  faith  in  Christ,  and  of 
his  immovable  trust  in  God,  his  forgetfulness  of  self  and 
entire  consecration  of  his  life  and  all  that  he  held  dear 
to  that  Saviour  who,  he  doubted  not,  would  speedily, 
gloriously,  and  for  ever,  triumph  over  Satan  and  all  his 
hosts,  by  that  word  which  he  was  the  honored  instru¬ 
ment  once  more  to  proclaim  to  the  world.” 

The  Translator  of  the  Hymn 

The  translating  of  Luther’s  hymn  began  very  early. 
His  hymns  seemed  to  the  early  Protestants  like  a  part 
of  their  confession  of  the  new  faith;  and  as  Lutheran 
ideas  spread  into  other  countries,  the  hymns  were  trans¬ 
lated,  and  sung  by  the  people  in  their  own  tongues.  In 
the  English  Reformation,  however,  they  had  no  part. 
While  an  exile  in  Germany,  toward  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  Myles  Coverdale  came  into  contact 
with  them,  and  made  versions  of  a  number,  which  he 
printed  in  his  Goostly  Psctlmes  and  Spiritnall  Songes.  He 
seems  to  have  been  more  interested  in  Luther’s  tunes 
than  in  the  words.  The  forty-sixth  Psalm  in  his  book  is 
in  the  metre  of  “  Ein’  Feste  Burg,”  but  only  the  first  four 
lines  follow  Luther’s  hymn.  The  first  real  translation  into 
English  is  probably  that  contained  in  Lyra  Davidica , 


A  MIGHTY  FORTRESS  IS  OUR  GOD  l6l 

published  in  London  in  1708,  and,  like  the  book  itself, 
anonymous. 

The  next  version  appeared  in  Psalmodia  Germamca , 
a  book  of  translations  of  German  hymns  published  at 
London  in  1722,  by  John  Christian  Jacobi,  who  had 
charge  of  the  Royal  German  Chapel  at  St.  James’s 
Palace.  This  interests  us  more,  because  a  reprint  of  the 
book  came  from  the  press  of  Hugh  Gaine  in  New  York 
in  1756.  It  was  the  first  hymnal  used  in  Lutheran 
services  in  English  in  this  country,  and  introduced  “  Ein’ 
Feste  Burg  ”  here  as  an  English  hymn.  This  version 
was  reprinted  by  Dr.  Kunze,  of  New  York,  in  his  Lu¬ 
theran  hymn  book  of  1795.  But  in  after  years,  both  in 
England  and  this  country,  knowledge  of  the  hymn  was 
mostly  confined  to  Germans  until  Carlyle  called  atten¬ 
tion  to  it  in  his  now  famous  essay,  “  Luther’s  Psalm,” 
printed  in  Fraser's  Magazine  for  1831.  Since  that  date 
very  many  writers,  both  English  and  American,  have 
attempted  versions  of  the  hymn ;  how  many,  it  would  be 
hard  to  say.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Bernhard  Pick  has  collected 
eighty  different  translations  in  a  little  book,  but  there 
are  many  more.  Of  these  versions,  some  are  poor 
enough  ;  and  of  them  all,  only  two  have  proved  widely 
successful. 

To  translate  a  hymn  into  another  language,  and  yet  to 
preserve  the  spirit  and  the  form  of  the  original,  is  always 
a  difficult  task.  But  to  do  it  in  such  a  way  that  a  foreign 
people  shall  love  to  sing  the  hymn  in  their  own  tongue 
is  a  feat  of  which  any  one  may  be  proud.  One  of  the 
two  successful  versions  is  the  translation  made  by  Thomas 
Carlyle,  and  printed  in  his  “Luther’s  Psalm”  in  1831. 
Carlyle’s  understanding  of  Luther,  and  his  own  gift  of 


1 62  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

downright  speech,  well  fitted  him  for  his  undertaking. 
In  many  respects  his  is  the  best  version  of  the  hymn  in 
English  ;  and  in  Great  Britain  it  is  the  one  most  generally 
sung,  although  some  changes  are  made  in  it,  in  most 
cases,  to  fit  it  for  such  a  use.  The  other  successful  trans¬ 
lation  is  American.  It  was  made  by  a  Unitarian  clergy- 


Me  J/u  'jidC  £run4 

//  *  (f  *  _I  *"  —y - 

ffile  /fnf/h,  /fay 

)/J Ni  /s'!  fil&l/e/X*  a 


A  VERSE  IN  THE  AUTOGRAPH  OF  THE  TRANSLATOR 


man,  the  Rev.  Frederic  Henry  Hedge,  and  first  appeared 
in  1852,  in  the  second  edition  of  Dr.  Furness's  Gems  of 


A  MIGHTY  FORTRESS  IS  OUR  GOD  1 63 

German  Verse.  A  year  later  Dr.  Hedge  included  it 
(just  as  it  stands  in  The  Hymnal  and  here)  in  Hymns  for 
the  Church  of  Christ. 

The  translator  did  his  work  well.  His  version  is 
worthy  to  stand  beside  Carlyle’s,  and  for  church  use  as  a 
hymn  is  probably  the  better  of  the  two.  It  has  become 
the  accepted  version  of  Luther’s  hymn  in  this  country, 
and  now  finds  a  place  in  the  great  majority  of  recent 
American  hymnals  of  the  better  kind.  Perhaps  we 
hardly  realize  that  Luther’s  hymn  is  gradually  becoming 
one  of  the  standard  hymns  of  the  American  Church. 
More  than  once  in  late  years  it  has  happened  that  classes 
in  our  colleges  have  adopted  it  by  vote  as  their  class 
hymn.  To  this  growing  appreciation  of  the  hymn  several 
things  contribute.  One  is  the  growth  of  historical  feel¬ 
ing,  making  more  of  historical  associations.  Another  is 
the  clear  ring  of  faith  in  the  hymn  itself,  never  more 
appealing  than  now.  Still  another  is  the  quality  of  the 
old  chorale  to  which  the  words  are  set.  But  Dr.  Hedge’s 
great  success  in  producing  such  a  version  as  makes  us 
feel  that  we  are  singing  Luther’s  hymn  itself,  must  also 
be  placed  high  among  the  causes  which  are  acclimating 
the  old  German  hymn. 

Dr.  Hedge  was  decidedly  a  man  of  mark  in  New  Eng¬ 
land  ;  a  thinker  and  scholar  of  influence.  His  life  is 
linked  with  Harvard  University  by  close  ties.  His 
mother  was  the  granddaughter  of  one  of  its  presidents, 
and  his  father  a  professor  there  for  over  thirty  years. 
He  himself  was  born  at  Cambridge,  December  12th, 
1805,  was  graduated  in  arts  by  Harvard  in  1825,  and  in 
divinity  three  years  later.  While  still  pastor  of  a  church 
at  Brookline,  in  1857,  he  became  Professor  of  Church 


164  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

History,  and  in  1872  Professor  of  German,  in  the  univer¬ 
sity.  This  latter  chair  he  held  until  1881,  and  lived  until 
August  2 1st,  1890. 

Dr.  Hedge  reached  manhood  at  a  time  when  there  was 
great  intellectual  unrest  in  New  England,  and  much 
excitement  on  moral  and  religious  questions.  It  culmi¬ 
nated  in  what  is  generally  called  the  Transcendental 
Movement  for  a  more  spiritual  philosophy.  Dr.  Channing 
was  probably  the  leader  of  this  movement,  but  Dr.  Hedge 
took  a  most  active  part  in  it.  He  was  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  Transcendental  Club  of  Boston,  and  of  its  eccen¬ 
tric  organ,  The  Dial.  Dr.  Hedge’s  particular  share  in 
this  movement  seems  to  have  been  to  make  known  and 
expound  the  literature,  and  especially  the  philosophy, 
of  Germany.  Before  going  to  Harvard  he  had  spent 
several  years  as  a  student  in  Germany.  These  made  him 
so  familiar  with  the  language  that  it  became  to  him  prac¬ 
tically  a  second  mother-tongue,  and  gave  him  a  sympathy 
with  German  thought,  of  which  he  remained  a  student 
all  his  life.  He  published,  in  1848,  a  large  volume  of 
The  Prose  Writers  of  Germany ,  which  became  a  standard 
work  ;  and  by  lectures,  review  articles,  and  books,  did 
much  to  make  the  philosophers  of  Germany  more  wel¬ 
come  than  they  had  been  in  New  England. 

This  translation  of  Luther’s  hymn,  therefore,  was  quite 
in  line  with  Dr.  Hedge’s  special  work.  For  keeping  his 
memory  green  in  the  world  it  is,  no  doubt,  the  most 
effective  piece  of  work  he  ever  did.  It  was  a  little  piece 
of  work.  And  yet  nothing  less  than  his  own  religious 
nature  and  strong  religious  feeling,  his  poetic  tempera¬ 
ment  and  gift  for  making  verse,  his  familiarity  with 
German  and  practiced  skill  in  translating  it — nothing  less 


■  •  . 


. 


REV.  FREDERIC  HENRY  HEDGE 


1 66  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

than  all  these  things,  combined  in  the  one  man,  made 
success  in  that  little  piece  of  work  possible. 

Dr.  Hedge’s  connection  with  the  hymnody  of  the 
Church  at  large  does  not  extend  much  beyond  this  con¬ 
tribution  of  his  translation  of  the  great  Reformer’s  hymn. 
He  holds  an  honorable  place  in  the  succession  of  Ameri¬ 
can  editors.  In  cooperation  with  the  Rev.  Frederick  D. 
Huntington  (then  a  Unitarian,  afterward  Bishop  in  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church)  he  prepared,  and  published 
in  1853  f°r  use  Unitarian  churches,  the  Hymns  for 
the  Church  of  Christ  already  referred  to.  It  had,  and 
deserved,  much  success,  being  of  a  high  order  both 
poetically  and  spiritually.  The  book  was  worth  while, 
if  only  because  it  introduced  to  the  churches  that  fine 
morning  hymn,  “  Now,  when  the  Dusky  Shades  of 
Night,  Retreating”  ( The  Hymnal,  No.  8).  If,  indeed, 
the  editors  had  been  careful  to  make  a  note  of  the 
authorship  or  source  of  that  hymn  (now  apparently  irre¬ 
vocably  lost)  their  service  would  be  still  more  appreci¬ 
ated  by  the  curious.  Dr.  Hedge  contributed  a  number 
of  original  hymns  to  the  book.  One  of  the  best  is  that 
beginning,  “  Beneath  Thine  hammer,  Lord,  I  lie.”  An¬ 
other,  which  sets  forth  the  cross  as  the  sign  of  Christ’s 
leadership,  beginning,  “  ’Twas  the  day  when  God’s 
Anointed,”  has  particular  merit,  judged  from  its  own 
point  of  view.  But  none  of  Dr.  Hedge’s  original  hymns 
has  come  into  more  than  a  limited  use,  even  within 
strictly  Unitarian  circles.  For  that  reason  any  inquiry 
into  his  theological  position  and  views  is  less  pertinent. 
It  is  just  as  well,  since  it  would  be  difficult  to  classify 
him  as  connected  with  any  special  school  of  thought. 
He  distrusted  system  and  cared  little  for  logical  con- 


A  MIGHTY  FORTRESS  IS  OUR  GOD  1 67 

sistency.  His  position  was  altogether  independent  and 
sometimes  undefined.  Certainly  he  hewed  a  path  far® 
beyond  the  conventions  of  Christian  theology.  What 
we  have  to  be  especially  grateful  for  is  the  undisturbed 
reflection  he  gave  forth  of  the  spirit  and  words  of 
Luther’s  hymn. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Luther  seems  to  have  been  accustomed  to  refer  to 
his  hymn  as  the  46th  Psalm.  This  is  interesting  as 
showing  the  source  of  Luther’s  inspiration ;  but  can  the 
hymn  be  said  to  be  a  version  of  that  psalm  ? 

(2)  The  following  analysis  of  the  hymn  has  been 
made :  “  In  stanza  i.  we  see  our  stronghold  and  its  be¬ 
siegers  ;  in  stanza  ii.  our  weakness,  our  Saviour’s  power 
and  might;  in  stanza  iii.  the  vanity  of  the  Prince  of  this 
World ;  in  stanza  iv.  whatever  earthly  goods  we  lose  we 
have  our  true  treasure  in  heaven.”  .  Is  the  analysis 
satisfactory  ? 

(3)  It  is  interesting  to  compare  Dr.  Hedge’s  translation 
with  such  others  as  one  has  access  to.  Carlyle’s,  in  his 
essay,  “  Luther’s  Psalm,”  is  to  be  found  in  all  editions  of 
his  works.  A  version  by  Longfellow  can  be  found 
imbedded  in  his  “  Golden  Legend.”  Many  of  the  later 
versions  have  no  individuality,  but  are  merely  the  old 
materials  worked  over  and  slightly  rearranged.  A  trans¬ 
lation  by  Thomas  I.  Zimmerman,  one  of  the  publishers 
of  the  Reading  Daily  Times  and  Dispatch ,  and  printed 
in  that  newspaper  in  1888,  is  thought  by  some  to  be  an 
exception.  ”  Nothing  is  more  cunous,  a  wntei  in  Tht 
Athenaeum  remarked  in  1897,  “than  the  way  in  which 
translators  go  on  working  in  beaten  paths.  Ceitainly 


1 68 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


the  beaten  paths  offer  least  hope  of  pioneer  work,  but 
each  fresh  comer,  finding  no  existing  translation  that 
seems  perfectly  satisfactory,  doubtless  hopes  to  straighten 
the  path  a  little  here  and  there.  And  the  same  qualities 
of  an  original  that  moved  its  first  translator  to  try  to 
express  what  he  found  there  move  others  in  the  same 
way.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  even  the  Quaker 
heart  of  Whittier  responded  to  the  trumpet-blast  of 
Luther  s  psalm.  He  entitled  one  of  his  poems  in  war 
time,  “  Ein’  Feste  Burg  ist  Unser  Gott,”  writing  it  also 
in  the  metre  of  the  original. 

o 


XVI 

ABIDE  WITH  ME:  FAST  FALLS  THE  EVENTIDE 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  Abide  with  me  :  fast  falls  the  eventide  ; 

The  darkness  deepens  ;  Lord,  with  me  abide : 

When  other  helpers  fail,  and  comforts  flee, 

Help  of  the  helpless,  O  abide  with  me. 

2  Swift  to  its  close  ebbs  out  life’s  little  day ; 

Earth’s  joys  grow  dim,  its  glories  pass  away ; 

Change  and  decay  in  all  around  I  see  ; 

O  Thou  who  changest  not,  abide  with  me. 

3  I  need  Thy  presence  every  passing  hour; 

What  but  Thy  grace  can  foil  the  tempter’s  power  ? 

Who  like  Thyself  my  guide  and  stay  can  be  ? 

Through  cloud  and  sunshine,  O  abide  with  me. 

4  I  fear  no  foe,  with  Thee  at  hand  to  bless : 

Ills  have  no  weight,  and  tears  no  bitterness. 

Where  is  death’s  sting  ?  where,  grave,  thy  victory  ? 

I  triumph  still,  if  Thou  abide  with  me. 

5  Hold  Thou  Thy  cross  before  my  closing  eyes  ; 

Shine  through  the  gloom,  and  point  me  to  the  skies: 
Heaven’s  morning  breaks,  and  earth’s  vain  shadows  flee  : 
In  life,  in  death,  O  Lord,  abide  with  me. 

Rev.  Henry  Francis  Lyte,  1847 

Note. — Five  verses  of  the  original  eight  (see  under  “  Some  Points  for 
Discussion  ”). 


169 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


170 


The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

The  darkness  that  deepens  in  the  hymn  is  the  shadow 
of  death  creeping  over  the  poet  himself,  whose  last  song 
it  was.  The  Rev.  Henry  Francis  Lyte,  who  was  pastor 
as  well  as  poet,  had  been  for  nearly  twenty-five  years  in 
charge  of  the  district  church  at  Lower  Brixham  on  the 
shores  of  Torbay,  England.  Originally  a  little  fishing 
village,  it  had  grown  into  a  somewhat  disorderly  and 
immoral  district,  with  a  rough  and  uneducated  popula¬ 
tion.  It  seems  a  strange  post  for  a  gentle  poet,  but  Mr. 
Lyte  exerted  a  great  influence  over  the  sailors  and  fisher¬ 
men,  for  whom  he  wrote  songs,  as  well  as  hymns  for 
their  children  in  his  schools.  Never  robust,  he  became 
year  by  year  less  fit  for  the  heavy  duties  of  the  post, 
until  the  time  came  when  he  broke  down  utterly,  and 
could  live  only  by  spending  the  winters  in  the  warmer 
climate  of  Southern  Europe.  He  had  come  home  to 
spend  the  summer  of  1847  with  his  church,  but  had  lain 
extremely  ill.  Sunday,  the  4th  of  September,  was  the 
last  day  of  his  permitted  stay  in  England,  and  he  shocked 
his  family  by  announcing  his  intention  to  preach  once 
more  to  his  own  people.  “  His  weakness,  and  the  possi¬ 
ble  danger  attending  the  effort,  were  urged  to  prevent  it ; 
but  in  vain.  He  felt  sure  he  should  be  enabled  to  fulfil 
his  wish,  and  feared  not  for  the  result.”  He  did  preach, 
and,  although  greatly  exhausted,  assisted  at  the  celebra¬ 
tion  of  the  Holy  Communion.  In  the  evening  of  that 
same  day  he  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  member  of  his 
family  the  manuscript  of  the  hymn  “  Abide  with  Me,” 
together  with  a  tune  he  had  composed  for  it.  On  the 
following  day  he  started  for  the  South,  but  did  not  live 


ABIDE  WITH  ME  :  EAST  BALLS  THE  EVENTIDE  1 7 1 

to  complete  the  journey.  When  within  a  few  hours  of 
Nice  he  was  attacked  by  influenza,  which  soon  developed 
alarming  symptoms,  and  after  some  days  of  suffeiing  he 
passed  away. 

It  deepens  the  pathos  of  these  circumstances  to  be 
told  by  Mr.  Lyte’s  daughter  (in  her  Memoir)  that  he 
was  much  distressed  by  difficulties  which  had  arisen 


among  his  people.  A  recent  visitor  to  Lower  Biixham 
records  a  local  tradition  that  a  defection  of  some  of  his 
church  workers  is  referred  to  in  the  words  of  the  first 

verse,  “  When  other  helpers  fail.” 

But  the  story  of  the  hymn  has  a  brighter  side.  It  is 
pleasant  to  think  of  it  in  connection  with  another  poem 
he  left  behind  him,  called  “  Declining  Days.”  In  this 
the  poet  asks  himself  why  he  should  sigh  at  the  thought 
of  approaching  death.  He  is  described  by  one  who 


172 


STUDIES  OF  FA  All  LIAR  HYMNS 


loved  him  as  a  cheerful  and  unselfish  invalid ;  but  this 
touching  poem  shows,  none  the  less,  that  he  shared  the 
regret  common  to  invalids  that  his  life  had  been  frus¬ 
trated  by  illness,  and  that  he  was  only  a  burden  to  his 
friends.  Death,  he  says,  would  seem  even  sweet  could 
he  think  that  in  his  narrow  bed  he  should  not  be  wholly 
mute  or  useless,  but  should  help  or  heal  some  living 
heart  by  his  verse  : — 

“  Some  simple  strain,  some  spirit-moving  lay, 

Some  sparklet  of  the  Soul,  that  still  might  live 
When  I  was  passed  to  clay  !  ” 

The  poem  closes  with  the  prayer : — 

“  O  Thou  !  whose  touch  can  lend 
Life  to  the  dead,  Thy  quick’ning  grace  supply, 

And  grant  me,  swanlike,  my  last  breath  to  spend 
In  song  that  may  not  die  !  ” 

Not  often  are  the  prayers  and  longings  of  a  disap¬ 
pointed  heart  so  literally  fulfilled.  It  was  given  to 
the  poet  to  sing  that  swan-song  that  should  not  die. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  George  D.  Baker,  of  Philadelphia,  has 
told  the  present  writer  of  meeting  a  young  man  at  a 
church  door  in  Nice  one  Sunday  morning.  They  could 
not  get  in  and  walked  together  to  another  church,  and 
after  service  went  to  visit  Lyte’s  grave  in  the  English 
cemetery.  While  they  stood  beside  the  grave  the  young 
stranger  became  much  affected  as  he  told  what  the 
hymn  had  been  to  him.  How  far,  indeed,  is  the  author 
of  such  a  hymn  from  being  “  mute  or  useless  in  his 
narrow  bed  ”  ! 

It  would  seem  strange  to  us  if  “  Abide  with  Me  ”  were 
omitted  from  the  hymn  books.  But  its  present  position 


ABIDE  WITH  ME.  EAST  BALLS  THE  EVENTIDE  1 73 

was  not  attained  immediately,  either  in  England  or  in 
this  country.  In  1855  Mr.  Beecher,  in  his  Plymouth 
Collection ,  put  three  verses  at  the  service  of  American 
Congregationalists.  In  1861  Dr.  Henry  A.  Boardman, 
of  Philadelphia,  in  his  Selection ,  introduced  the  entire 
hymn  to  Presbyterians,  especially  of  his  own  congrega¬ 
tion.  But  he  preceded  it  by  the  notice:  “[For  reading 
only].”  That  notice  reads  curiously  now.  But  he  may 
have  considered,  as  some  still  consider,  the  hymn  too 
personal  and  intense  for  congregational  use;  or  more 
likely,  he  knew  of  no  tune  that  would  carry  the  long 
lines.  Indeed,  the  actual  use  of  the  hymn  dates  from 
the  publication,  that  same  year,  ot  the  now  familiar  tune 
in  Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern.  After  one  of  the  meet¬ 
ings  of  the  committee  which  compiled  that  book  it  was 
suddenly  remembered  that  there  was  no  tune  for  Hymn 
27,  “  Abide  with  Me  ”  ;  whereupon  Dr.  Monk,  the  musi¬ 
cal  editor  (so  he  told  a  friend),  sat  down  and  composed 
in  ten  minutes  the  tune  that  has  carried  Hymn  27  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Mr.  Lyte  was  born  June  1st,  1793,  near  Kelso,  Scot¬ 
land,  but  was  the  son  of  a  captain  in  the  English  army. 
Both  parents  died  while  he  was  a  child,  leaving  him  to 
strueMe  for  a  liberal  education.  Several  prizes  for  poems 
gained  at  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  were  a  welcome  addi¬ 
tion  to  his  slender  income,  which  he  also  supplemented 
by  teaching;  and  he  was  graduated  in  1814.  He  began 
the  study  of  medicine,  but  in  1815  was  ordained  to  the 
ministry  in  the  Church  of  England. 

His  first  charge  was  “  a  dreary  Irish  curacy,”  within 


174  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

seven  miles  of  the  town  of  Wexford — “  Remote  from 
towns,  in  almost  perfect  seclusion,  giving  myself  up  to 
the  duties  of  my  situation,  writing  my  sermons,  visiting 
my  sick,  catechizing  my  children,  without  other  com¬ 
panions  than  my  flute,  my  pen,  and  my  books.” 

While  there  he  had  a  strange  spiritual  experience. 
He  was  called  in  during  the  last  illness  of  a  neighboring 
clergyman,  whom  he  attended  for  some  weeks.  The 
clergyman,  Mr.  Lyte  tells  us,  bore  the  highest  character 
foi  benevolence,  piety,  and  good  sense.  But  his  last  days 
had  brought  distress  and  not  peace,  and  he  spent  them 
in  reviewing  anxiously  his  own  spiritual  condition  and 
grounds  for  hope.  The  sick  man  insisted  upon  going 
into  an  examination  of  the  evidences  for  a  future  state, 
for  the  trustworthiness  of  the  Scriptures  as  a  revelation 
from  God,  and  finally  of  the  means  by  which  a  happy 
eternity  was  to  be  attained.  “  My  blood  almost  curdled,” 
Mr.  Lyte  writes,  “  to  hear  the  dying  man  declare  and 
prove,  with  irrefutable  clearness,  that  both  he  and  I  had 
been  utterly  mistaken  in  the  means  we  had  adopted  for 
ourselves,  and  recommended  to  others,  if  the  explana¬ 
tory  epistles  of  St.  Paul  were  to  be  taken  in  their  plain 
and  literal  sense.  You  can  hardly  perhaps  conceive  the 
effect  of  all  this,  proceeding  from  such  a  man,  in  such  a 
situation.”  The  dying  man  found  peace,  and  Mr.  Lyte 
went  forth  a  changed  man,  with  a  new  spirit  within 
him  and  a  , new  message  on  his  lips.  ^ 

The  strain  of  these  weeks,  with  subsequent  labors, 
pi  oved  too  great  for  his  strength.  He  became  very  ill, 
and  was  threatened  with  consumption — a  shadow  from 
which  his  after  life  was  never  to  be  free.  He  traveled 
on  the  continent,  and  on  his  return,  “  after  being  jostled 


ABIDE  WITH  ME  :  EAST  BALLS  THE  EVENTIDE  1 75 


“from  one  curacy  to  another,”  he  settled  down  to  work 
in  a  Cornwall  village.  Here  he  married,  and  soon  after 
moved  into  the  quiet  country  near  Lymington,  where  he 
wrote  many  of  his  poems,  and  the  Tales  on  the  Lord  s 
Prayer  which  Christopher  North  liked  so  well.  In  1823 


Mr.  Lyte  took  charge  of  the  district  church  at  Lower 
Brixham,  where  he  was  to  do  the  great  work  of  his 
ministry.  This  charge  he  retained  until  his  death,  which 
occurred  near  Nice,  France,  on  November  20th,  1847. 

“A  simple  marble  cross  in  the  English  cemetery  at 
Nice  fitly  marks  the  last  resting-place  of  one  whose 
highest  honor  and  desire  in  active  life  had  been  to  exalt 

o 


\y6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  the  Cross ;  who  meekly  bore  the  Cross  through  years 
of  suffering,  and  who,  trusting  in  the  merits  of  his 
Blessed  Saviour’s  Cross  and  Passion  alone,  calmly  re¬ 
signed  his  mortal  life,  in  the  sure  and  certain  hope  of  a 
glorious  immortality.”  With  such  words  Mrs.  Hogg 
brings  to  a  close  the  Memoir  of  her  father  which  she 
prefixed  to  the  volume  of  his  literary  Remains. 

Mr.  Lyte’s  position  as  a  hymn  writer  is  a  very  high 
one.  An  earlier  hymn,  “  Jesus,  I  my  Cross  Have  Taken  ” 
( The  Hymnal ,  No.  356),  has  been  in  the  past  even  more 
used  than  this.  Many  other  excellent  hymns  have  been 
taken  from  his  Spirit  of  the  Psalms}  a  book  originally 
printed  in  1834  for  the  use  of  his  own  congregation. 
His  miscellaneous  poems  are  of  much  less  import,  and 
rarely  reveal  the  creative  touch  of  imagination.  One  of 
them,  “  On  a  Naval  Officer  Buried  in  the  Atlantic,”  was 
set  to  music  by  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan.  As  recently  as 
1 868  a  volume  of  Lyte’s  Miscellaneous  Poems  was  re¬ 
printed  in  London,  with  a  prefatory  notice  of  “  a  con¬ 
tinual  demand  for”  them.  The  demand  even  then  was 
perhaps  less  the  call  for  specific  poems  of  his  than  a 
curiosity  to  see  what  else  the  author  of  such  hymns  had 
written.  But  in  the  hymns  lay  his  strength.  It  is  dis¬ 
tinction  enough  for  one  man  to  have  written  “  Abide 
with  Me.” 

Some  points  for  discussion 

(1)  Is  this  hymn  an  evening  hymn  or  not?  It  is 
usually  so  classed  in  the  hymnals.  On  the  other  hand, 
Mr.  Ellerton,  himself  a  distinguished  hymn  writer,  says 
that  this  is  done  “  apparently  on  the  ground  of  the  first 
two  lines,  and  their  similarity  in  sound  to  two  lines  in 


ABIDE  WITH  ME :  FAST  EALLS  THE  EVENTIDE  1 77 

“  Keble’s  ‘  Sun  of  My  Soul.’  This  is  a  curious  instance 
of  the  misapprehension  of  the  true  meaning  of  the  hymn 
by  those  among  whom  it  is  popular;  for  a  very  little 
consideration  will  suffice  to  show  that  there  is  not 
throughout  the  hymn  the  slightest  allusion  to  the  close 
of  the  natural  day :  the  words  of  St.  Luke  xxiv.  29  are 
obviously  used  in  a  sense  wholly  metaphorical.” 

(2)  In  Mr.  Lyte’s  manuscript  the  second  line  began, 
“  The  darkness  thickens.”  In  the  hymn  as  printed 
almost  at  once  it  was  changed  (no  doubt  by  Mr.  Lyte 
himself)  to  “  The  darkness  deepens.”  In  the  first  line 
of  the  last  verse  Mr.  Lyte  originally  wrote,  “  Hold,  then, 
Thy  cross  ”  ;  and  so  it  was  first  printed  and  again  by 
his  daughter  after  his  death.  But  in  the  later  edition 
of  his  Poems  it  reads,  “  Hold  Thou  Thy  cross.”  There 
being  some  uncertainty  here  of  what  Mr.  Lyte’s  final 
preference  was,  was  it  right  to  use  in  The  Hymnal  the 
reading  that  is  preferable  and  also  universally  accepted  ? 

(3)  The  Southern  Presbyterian  Church  has  been  en¬ 
gaged  in  the  preparation  of  a  new  hymnal  (published  in 
1902).  A  correspondent  of  the  Hymnal  Committee 
insisted  that  the  line  just  referred  to  must  not  gQ  in 
because  suggesting  “  Romish  belief  and  practice.”  Is 
there  adequate  ground  for  this  proposed  exclusion  ? 

(4)  The  hymn  had  eight  verses  in  all.  Hymns  Ancient 
and  Modern ,  which  brought  the  hymn  into  use,  omitted 
the  third,  fourth,  and  fifth,  thus  reducing  it  to  five  verses. 
This  course  has  been  generally  followed.  It  is  plain 
that  eight  verses  of  lines  so  long  set  to  a  tune  of  slow 
movement  will  not  be  actually  sung ;  and  there  is 
general  agreement  that  the  omitted  verses  do  not  help 
the  five  that  make  a  hymn  already  rounded  and  com- 


I7S 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


plete.  It  is,  perhaps,  an  open  question  whether  the 
whole  of  such  a  poem  should  be  given  in  a  hymn  book 
for  the  sake  of  completeness.  The  omitted  verses  are 
as  follows : — 

“  3  Not  a  brief  glance  I  beg,  a  passing  word  ; 

But,  as  Thou  dwell’ st  with  Thy  disciples,  Lord, 

Familiar,  condescending,  patient,  free, 

Come,  not  to  sojourn,  but  abide,  with  me. 

“4  Come  not  in  terrors,  as  the  King  of  kings; 

But  kind  and  good,  with  healing  in  Thy  wings  ; 

Tears  for  all  woes,  a  heart  for  every  plea; 

Come,  Friend  of  sinners,  and  thus  bide  with  me. 

“  5  Thou  on  my  head  in  early  youth  didst  smile  ; 

And,  though  rebellious  and  perverse  meanwhile, 

Thou  hast  not  left  me,  oft  as  I  left  Thee  : 

On  to  the  close,  O  Lord,  abide  with  me.” 


XVII 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

i  God  bless  our  native  land ; 

Firm  may  she  ever  stand 
Through  storm  and  night : 

When  the  wild  tempests  rave, 
Ruler  of  wind  and  wave, 

Do  Thou  our  country  save 
By  Thy  great  might. 


2  For  her  our  prayers  shall  rise 
To  God,  above  the  skies ; 

On  Him  we  wait ; 

Thou  who  art  ever  nigh, 

Guarding  with  watchful  eye, 

To  Thee  aloud  we  cry, 

God  save  the  State. 

[The  first  five  lines  are  here  attributed  to  the  Rev. 
Charles  Timothy  Brooks  as  author  or  trans¬ 
lator,  (about)  1832-35;  the  remainder  to  Dr, 
John  Sullivan  Dwight,  (about)  1844] 

Note. — Of  this  hymn  there  can  be  no  authoritative  text.  That  here 
printed  is  taken  from  Lowell  Mason’s  Carmina  Sacra,  1841. 
Two  earlier  texts  are  quoted  in  the  Study. 

179 


i8o 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  Story  of  the  hymn 

The  one  thing  about  this  little  hymn  that  seems  certain 
is  its  excellence.  And  its  excellence  is  not  lessened  by 
the  fact  that  the  hymn  is  cosmopolitan.  It  claims,  indeed, 
to  be  translated  from  the  German.  Whether  or  not  that 
is  so,  all  who  speak  English,  be  they  American  or  British, 
can  sing  it  side  by  side.  The  meaning  of  the  hymn  is 
plain  to  all  who  love  their  native  land.  The  authorship 
of  the  hymn  is  much  less  certain,  and  has  all  the  interest 
of  a  puzzle. 

(i)  Mrs.  Henshaw's  Claim. — One  day,  in  1895,  the 
writer  saw,  on  a  friend’s  table  at  Germantown,  a  little 
book  of  poems  by  Sarah  E.  Henshaw.  Turning  the 
leaves,  his  eye  caught  this  hymn  printed  among  the  other 
poems  of  that  lady  as  her  own.  Greatly  surprised,  he 
inquired  of  his  friend  who  she  was.  He  learned  that  she 
was  a  lady  of  high  character,  of  New  England  lineage, 
who  had  lately  died  in  California,  and  was  the  true 
author  of  this  hymn.  The  writer  at  once  started  an 
investigation.  He  secured  from  Mrs.  Henshaw’s  family 
a  copy  of  a  letter  in  which  she  had  made  her  own  state¬ 
ment  of  her  claim  as  follows  :  “  I  wrote  the  verses  just 
after  the  fall  of  Fort  Sumter.  I  was  then  living  in  Illinois. 
I  learned  from  the  papers  that  the  Rhode  Island  volun¬ 
teers  had  gone  through  to  the  front,  singing  ‘John 
Brown’s  Body,’  and  that  Governor  Buckingham  had  put 
the  organization  of  our  Connecticut  regiments  in  charge 
of  my  uncle,  General  Dan.  Tyler.  With  a  heart  on  fire, 
and  desirous  that  the  Connecticut  soldiers  should  also 
have  something  to  sing,  I  wrote  the  verses  in  question. 
That  every  one  might  know  the  music,  I  wrote  them  for 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND  l8l 

“  the  air  ‘  God  Save  the  King.’  I  sent  them  by  post  to  my 
uncle  with  much  hesitation,  because  he  would  probably 
think  it  all  nonsense.  Neither  did  I  attach  my  name  to 
the  verses  :  I  wrote  at  the  caption,  *  By  a  daughter  of 
Connecticut.’  I  kept  no  copy,  sent  them  to  no  pub¬ 
lisher,  heard  nothing  of  them,  took  it  for  granted  that 
my  uncle  had  thrown  them  aside. 

“  After  the  war  I  moved  out  here  [Oakland].  I  drove 
down  the  street  one  Fourth  of  July  to  hear  the  school- 
children  sing.'  They  sang  my  verses—  those  verses!  I 
looked  at  the  programme;  there  were  the  lines.  ‘  Why !  / 
wrote  that !’  I  explained  to  [a  friend].  As  I  wrote  them, 
the  poem  contained  several  verses.  Here  were  only  two. 
But  I  was  glad  to  get  them.  They  were  the  first  and  the 
last.  In  writing  them,  I  felt  much  dissatisfied  with  the 
last  line  of  the  last  verse,  viz. :  ‘  God  save  the  State  ’ ; 
and  had  earnestly  cast  about  without  avail  for  a  stronger 
climax  to  match  my  rhyme.  But  here  it  was,  just  the 
same.  I  smiled  at  the  recollection,  as  I  carefully  put  the 
programme  into  my  reticule.” 

(2)  Mr.  Brooks's  Claim. — Mrs.  Henshaw’s  letter  was 
written  to  the  Rev.  Charles  W.  Wendte.  Now  it  hap¬ 
pened  that  Mr.  Wendte  had  been  the  friend  of  the  Rev. 
Charles  T.  Brooks,  a  poet  and  translator  of  much  ability, 
pastor  for  many  years  of  a  Unitarian  church  at  New¬ 
port.  While  sympathizing  with  Mrs.  Henshaw’s  wish  to 
establish  her  authorship,  Mr.  Wendte  writes  her:  “My 
dear  old  friend,  Mr.  Brooks,  whose  memoir  I  wrote, 
called  it  his.  He  wrote  so  much  that  it  is  not  at  all 
unlikely  he  was  wrong.” 

Mr.  Brooks  certainly  claimed  the  hymn.  In  1875  his 
friend  Dr.  Putnam  printed  the  following  statement,  ap- 


V-»^7 


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AN  AUTOGRAPH  POEM  OF  MR.  BROOKS 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND 


183 


parently  by  Mr.  Brooks’s  authority :  “  Compilers  and 
hymnologists  have  either  marked  ’4  God  Bless  Our  Native 
Land’  anonymous  or  else  have  attributed  it  to  John  S. 
Dwight.  Mr.  Brooks  translated  it  from  the  German 
while  he  was  a  member  of  the  Divinity  School  at  Cam¬ 
bridge  [1832-35].  It  was  shortly  afterward  altered  in 
some  of  its  lines  by  Mr.  Dwight,  and  in  its  changed 
form  was  first  introduced,  it  is  supposed,  into  one  of 
Lowell  Mason’s  singing-books.  Hence,  doubtless,  it 
came  to  be  credited  so  widely  to  Mr.  Dwight  himself. 
We  give  the  original  translation  of  it  by  Mr.  Brooks  : — 


“  ‘  God  bless  our  native  land  ! 
Firm  may  she  ever  stand 
Through  storm  and  night! 
When  the  wild  tempests  rave, 
Ruler  of  wind  and  wave, 
Father  Eternal,  save 
Us  by  thy  might ! 

“  11  Lo  !  our  hearts’  prayers  arise 
Into  the  upper  skies, 

Regions  of  light ! 

He  who  hath  heard  each  sigh 
Watches  each  weeping  eye : 
He  is  forever  nigh, 

Venger  of  Right !’” 


(3)  Dr.  Dzvight's  Claim. — “  I  hasten  to  say  that  the 
hymn,  ‘  God  Bless  Our  Native  Land,’  has  been  ac¬ 
credited  to  me  for  nearly  fifty  years,  though  I  really 
had  forgotten  ever  writing  it.”  So  answered,  in  1893, 
Dr.  John  S.  Dwight,  the  famous  musical  critic  of  Boston, 
when  asked  what  light  he  could  throw  upon  the  matter. 
Dr.  Dwight  goes  on  to  say :  “  Brooks  reminded  me 
once  of  our  doing  it  piecemeal  together.  Certainly,  it 


1  ^4  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

dates  fai  back  of  Fort  Sumter.  About  the  year  1844  I 
tianslated  many  songs  from  a  German  song  book  for 


A  VERSE  IN  DR.  DWIGHT’S  AUTOGRAPH 


Lowell  Mason’s  collection  for  our  public  schools — 
sometimes  translating,  sometimes  making  a  stanza  or 
two  at  first  hand.  I  presume  this  was  one  of  them. 
Brooks  did  the  same  thing  for  Dr.  Mason.  I  did  the 
work  hastily  and  cheaply.  I  never  thought  of  the  soncr 

•  >>  «  fc> 

again. 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND  1 85 

Ten  years  earlier  (1883)  Dr.  Dwight  had  written  an¬ 
other  letter,  now  in  possession  of  the  present  writer, 
accompanying  the  autograph  verse  here  reproduced.  He 
explains  that  he  transcribes  and  signs  only  this  first  verse 
of  the  hymn,  “  which  I  am  pretty  confident  is  mine.” 
As  to  the  second  verse  (as  given  in  The  Hymnal  and 
here)  he  is  less  confident.  “  This  also  I  think  may  have 
been  made  by  me,  but  am  not  sure. 

(4)  Mr.  Hickson's  Claim— As  early  as  1869  an  Eng¬ 
lish  musician,  Mr.  William  E.  Hickson,  had  seen  Di. 
Dwight’s  name  given  as  the  author  of  “  God  Bless  Our 
Native  Land.”  He  wrote  to  Mr.  Sedgwick,  the  hym- 
nologist,  stating  that  he  had  written  the  hymn  in  1836 
as  a  new  national  anthem,  and  that  it  first  appeared  in 
his  book  called  The  Singing  Master ,  published  in  the 
same  year. 


Some  points  for  discussion 

(1)  Mr.  Hickson’s  claim  is  easily  disposed  of.  It  is  a 
fact  that  he  published  in  1836  a  hymn  beginning, — 

“  God  bless  our  native  land, 

May  heav’n’s  protecting  hand 
Still  guard  our  shore  !” 

The  first  line,  curiously  enough,  is  identical  with  that 
of  the  American  hymn.  But  the  present  writer  has 
examined  Mr.  Hickson’s  book,  and  can  state  that  no 
single  line  of  his  hymn,  except  the  first,  has  even  a  re¬ 
semblance  to  any  line  of  the  American  hymn  in  any  one 
of  its  versions. 

(2)  The  claim  of  Mrs.  Henshaw  must  be  disposed  of 
by  asking  one  question.  How  could  a  hymn  which  had 


i86 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


been  piinted  as  early  as  1841  have  been  written  by  her 
in  1861  ?  That  lady  made  her  claim  in  perfect  good 
faith,  none  the  less,  and  died  with  the  cherished  convic¬ 
tion  that  she  was  the  true  author.  She  was  the  victim 

of  one  of  those  tricks  of  memory  to  which  we  are  all 
subject. 

(3)  The  claims  of  Mr.  Brooks  and  Dr.  Dwight  are 
moie  difficult  to  adjust,  and  neither  is  presented  in  satis¬ 
factory  shape.  In  an  ordinary  case,  Dr.  Putnam’s  ac¬ 
count  of  the  origin  of  the  hymn  would  be  accepted 
without  question.  But  in  this  case  of  disputed  author¬ 
ship,  Mr.  Brooks  should  have  furnished  all  particulars, 
such  as  the  evidence  for  the  date,  the  original  draft,  if 
existing,  a  reference  to  its  first  publication,  etc.  He 
offeis  nothing  beyond  the  bare  statement,  whatever 
pi  oof  he  may  have  held.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  Dr. 
Dwight  offers  no  more,  and  plainly  he  held  no  proof  of 
his  claim.  He  speaks  too  from  revived  recollections  of 
an  old  event  to  which,  at  the  time,  he  attached  no  im- 
poitance  and  had  long  forgotten. 

The  eailiest  appearance  of  the  hymn  known  to  the 
Present  writer  is  in  1841,  in  Lowell  Mason’s  Carmina 
Sacra.  There  the  first  five  lines  agree  with  Dr.  Putnam’s 
text.  The  remainder  is  changed  and  reads 

“  Do  thou  our  country  save, 

By  thy  great  might. 

2  “  For  her  our  prayer  shall  rise, 

To  God  above  the  skies ; 

On  him  we  wait: 

Thou  who  has  heard  each  sigh, 

Watching  each  weeping  eye, 

Be  thou  forever  niejh  : 

God  save  the  State.” 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND  1 87 

In  1845  the  hymn  appears  again  in  Mr.  Mason’s 
Psaltery ,  this  time  in  a  revised  form,  agreeing  with  the 
text  as  printed  here  and  in  most  modern  books. 

By  comparing  the  44  original  translation  with  this 
text,  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Brooks’s  claim  covers  only 


REV.  CHARLES  T. 


BROOKS 


five  lines  of  the  hymn  as  at  present  sung.  Each  claim¬ 
ant  seems  to  have  a  recollection  that  the  othei  con¬ 
tributed  something  to  the  hymn.  We  may,  therefore, 
accept  their  joint  authorship  of  the  hymn  as  it  now 
stands.  And  may  we  not  make  a  reasonable  adjustment 
of  their  claims  that  substantially  admits  both?  Mi. 
Brooks  wrote  (or  translated)  in  the  thirties  the  hymn  as 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


I  88 

given  by  Dr.  Putnam.  By  him  or  Dr.  Dwight  (jointly, 
perhaps)  it  was  improved  before  1841.  Finally,  Dr. 
Dwight  rewrote  the  hymn  for  Lowell  Mason,  not*  later 
than  1844,  using  the  first  five  lines  by  Mr.  Brooks. 

This  adjustment  seems  practically  to  reconcile  both 
statements.  May  it  not  be  accepted  as  at  least  more 
than  piobable  ?  The  only  bit  of  evidence  refusing  to  be 
linked  in  this  conclusion  is  the  verse  signed  by  Dr. 
Dwight,  which  he  was  “pretty  confident”  was  his,  and 
which  contains  the  very  lines  ascribed  to  Mr.  Brooks. 
But,  as  Mrs.  Henshaw  s  claim  reminds  us,  the  memory 
cannot  be  trusted  to  pick  up  forgotten  lines  after  so  long 
an  interval  of  time ;  and  it  looks  to  the  present  writer  as 
though  Dr.  Dwight  himself  did  not  feel  so  very  con¬ 
fident  about  the  details. 

The  Authors  of  the  Hymn 

We  are  now  in  a  position  to  refer  with  some  confidence 
to  the  joint  authors  of  the  hymn. 

The  Rev.  Charles  T.  Brooks  was  born  at  Salem,  Massa¬ 
chusetts,  on  June  20th,  1813.  He  was  graduated  by 
Harvard  College  in  1832,  and  by  the  Divinity  School  at 
Cambridge  in  1835.  His  principal  pastorate,  at  Newport, 
Rhode  Island,  began  in  1837  and  continued  until  1871, 
when  he  resigned  through  failure  of  his  sight  and  health.’ 
He  died  on  June  14th,  1883. 

Mr.  Brooks  was  a  poet  and  scholar,  and  also  a  diligent 
man  of  letters.  The  list  of  his  works,  original  and 
translated,  is  a  very  long  one,  and  their  character  is  such 
as  reflects  honor  upon  their  author’s  name.  Gentle  and 
retiring,  he  was  greatly  loved  in  life,  though  it  is  not 
likely  that  his  work  ever  took  hold  of  a  very  wide  public. 


GOD  BLESS  OUR  NATIVE  LAND  1 89 

His  translations  of  Goethe’s  “Faust”  and  of  Richters 
“Hesperus”  and  “Titan”  are  the  best  remembered  of 
his  productions.  Of  his  hymns  none  has  ever  come  into 

general  use. 

One  of  Mr.  Brooks’s  most  intimate  friends,  his  class¬ 
mate  at  Harvard  and  his  co-laborer  in  several  literary 
undertakings,  was  John  S.  Dwight.  He  was  the  son  of 


JOHN  S.  DWIGHT 


Dr.  John  Dwight,  of  Boston,  where  he  was  born  on  May 
13th,  1813.  He  also  was  graduated  by  Harvard  in  1832, 
and  by  the  Divinity  School  in  1836.  His  first  and  only 
pastoral  charge  was  that  of  a  little  Unitarian  congrega¬ 
tion  at  Northampton,  Massachusetts,  and  lasted  only  one 
year.  At  its  close  he  quietly  retired  from  the  ministry. 


I90  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Bashful,  sensitive,  and  lacking  confidence  in  himself,  he 
was  hardly  at  home  in  the  pulpit.  He  shrank  too  from 
any  outward  expression  of  religious  feeling;  in  later 
years  developing  great  dislike  to  church  organization  and 
methods,  and  ceasing  to  attend  religious  services.  After 
the  ministiy  came  the  years  of  his  connection  with  the 
Brook  Farm  experiment,  in  which  he  was  an  active 
spirit. 

But,  wherever  he  was,  the  real  enthusiasm  of  his  nature 
was  for  music.  He  founded,  in  1852,  Dwight's  Journal 
of  Music ,  which,  against  great  financial  difficulties,  he 
continued  until  1881.  It  gave  him  a  recognized  position 
as  the  leader  of  Boston’s  musical  interests,  and  through 
it  and  other  labors  he  did  great  service  to  music  as  a 
branch  of  liberal  culture. 

Dr.  Dwight  (he  became  a  Doctor  of  Music)  was  of 
slender  build  and  short  stature.  He  was  mild  in  manner, 
of  a  sweet  and  cheerful  nature,  and,  however  shy,  was 
“  clubbable,”  being  one  of  the  famous  Saturday  Club. 
He  was  very  positive  in  his  opinions  and  uncompromising 
in  maintaining  his  intellectual  and  aesthetic  ideals.  Dr. 
Dwight  was  singularly  unfitted  for  the  task  of  living. 
He  met  life  in  a  spirit  of  helplessness  that  appealed 
greatly  to  his  friends,  and  which,  in  spite  of  their  efforts, 
kept  him  in  a  struggle  with  poverty  all  his  days.  He 
died  at  Boston  on  September  5th,  1893. 


XVIII 


FATHER  OF  MERCIES,  IN  THY  WORD 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  Father  of  mercies,  in  Thy  word 

What  endless  glory  shines  ; 

For  ever  be  Thy  Name  adored 
For  these  celestial  lines. 

2  Here  may  the  wretched  sons  of  want 

Exhaustless  riches  find ; 

Riches  above  what  earth  can  grant, 

And  lasting  as  the  mind. 

3  Here  the  Redeemer’s  welcome  voice 

Spreads  heavenly  peace  around ; 

And  life  and  everlasting  joys 
Attend  the  blissful  sound. 

4  O  may  these  heavenly  pages  be 

My  ever  dear  delight ; 

And  still  new  beauties  may  I  see, 

And  still  increasing  light. 

5  Divine  Instructor,  gracious  Lord, 

Be  Thou  for  ever  near ; 

Teach  me  to  love  Thy  sacred  word, 

And  view  my  Saviour  there. 

Anne  Steele,  1760 

Note. — Five  verses  of  the  original  twelve.  The  text  is  taken  from  the 
Poems  of  Theodosia,  vol.  i, 


191 


192 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

If  this  hymn  were  to  be  taken  alone,  its  story  might 
be  summed  up  very  briefly.  It  is  a  leaf  out  of  an  inva¬ 
lid’s  spiritual  diary,  penned  in  the  Baptist  parsonage  of 
an  obscure  English  village.  That  leaf  bears  no  date  of 
composition,  dates  being  of  but  little  account  in  the 
monotonous  passage  of  such  a  life.  The  hymn  first 
appeared  in  print  in  1760  among  the  other  poems  of 
Miss  Steele,  but  may  have  been  written  some  years 
earlier ;  and  it  soon  found  the  place  in  the  hymn  books 
which  it  has  always  kept. 

The  hymn  has  much  more  of  a  story  if  taken  in  its 
historical  connection  with  the  whole  body  of  Miss  Steele’s 
hymns.  Of  these  it  is  one  of  the  best,  and  it  has  its 
share  in  the  very  conspicuous  part  they  have  played  in 
the  history  of  our  hymnody. 

Miss  Steele’s  verses  had  long  been  familiar  to  her 
friends,  but  she  was  modest  and  reluctant  to  appear  in 
print.  It  was  by  the  advice  and  even  persuasion  of 
others  that  at  length  she  consented  to  publish  them,  and 
then  without  her  name.  In  1760  they  appeared  in  two 
volumes,  at  London,  as  “  Poems  on  Subjects  Chiefly  De¬ 
votional.  By  Theodosia.”  If  one  were  now  to  take  up 
the  little  brown  calf  books  for  the  first  time  it  would  not 
occur  to  him  that  Theodosia  was  a  poet  of  a  high  order. 
He  would  perceive,  however,  that  many  of  the  pieces  were 
written  in  the  simple  metres  then  used  in  hymns,  and 
were  composed  with  correctness  and  much  tender  feel¬ 
ing.  He  would  probably  conclude  that  they  were  in¬ 
tended  to  be  sung,  and  might  even  point  out  a  number 
as  likely  to  succeed  if  put  into  the  hymnals.  This 


FATHER  OF  MERCIES ,  IN  THY  WORD 


193 


would  be  a  judgment  from  the  standpoint  of  our  own 
time.  To  Miss  Steele’s  friends  and  contemporaries  it 


rT^/' <L-^j 

^9^3  o  ^ ' ^,-e^m  _  Jh-o  pY^r-i^rf  f 


<  /^-Co 


Yj-t  eH^c^CHc)  <S<rm^r 
ly^csCc^f  <rriQ  ^  A* 

/tziQ  m 


AUTOGRAPH  VERSES 

would  have  seemed  faint  praise  indeed.  They  hailed 
her  as  a  great  light  risen  upon  the  horizon.  She  made 
an  impression  upon  the  Christian  feeling  of  her  time 
extraordinary  both  for  its  depth  and  for  the  wideness  of 
x3 


J94 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


its  reach.  Her  hymns  entered  upon  a  career  of  popu¬ 
larity  which  we  can  hardly  realize,  but  of  which  we 
must  try  to  gain  some  idea. 

Nine  years  after  the  appearance  of  her  Poems  two 
English  Baptist  clergymen,  Dr.  John  Ash  and  Dr.  Caleb 
Evans,  published  at  Bristol  a  successful  hymn  book, 
containing  in  all  four  hundred  and  twelve  hymns.  Of 
these  no  less  than  sixty-two  are  by  Miss  Steele,  and  the 
preface  has  a  special  paragraph  in  her  honor.  After 
her  death  Dr.  Evans  printed  in  1780  a  new  edition 
of  her  Poems,  including  a  third  volume  she  had  made 
ready  for  the  press.  Seven  years  later  Dr.  John  Rippon 
published  his  Selection ,  which  was  destined  to  have 
great  vogue  among  Baptists,  and  to  supersede  the  Ash 
and  Evans  book.  But  even  this  contained  forty-seven 
of  Miss  Steele’s  hymns.  Dr.  Rippon’s  book  was  often 
reprinted  in  the  United  States,  and  it  extended  Miss 
Steele’s  influence  here.  A  simple  fact  will  serve  to  show 
how  widely  her  popularity  spread  and  how  long  it  lasted. 
The  people  of  Trinity  Church  in  Boston  grew  weary  of 
singing  the  authorized  Psalm-versions,  and  in  1808  the 
vestry  ventured  to  print  a  hymn  book  for  their  private 
use.  In  this  book  of  only  one  hundred  and  fifty-two 
hymns  fifty-nine  are  Miss  Steele’s,  and  the  preface  ex¬ 
plains  that  “  if  we  have  extracted  more  copiously  from 
Mrs.  Steele  than  from  any  other  writer,  we  have  done  no 
more  than  what  we  thought  due  to  her  poetical  superi¬ 
ority,  and  to  the  ardent  spirit  of  devotion  which  breathes 
in  her  compositions.”  Such  a  tribute  from  within  the 
most  exclusive  of  denominations,  and  from  another 
Y  an  her  own,  reveals  something  of  the  great 
influence  of  Miss  Steele’s  hymns. 


FATHER  OF  MERCIES ,  IN  THY  WORD 


195 


The  three  volumes  of  Theodosia’s  Poems  were  re¬ 
printed  in  Boston  in  1 808  ;  and  the  hymns  were  reprinted 
once  more  in  London  as  late  as  1863  by  Daniel  Sedgwick, 
the  hymnologist.  But  during  the  latter  half  of  the  nine¬ 
teenth  century  the  enthusiasm  for  what  Dr.  Evans  called 
“  those  truly  sublime  composures  ”  has  been  gradually 
cooling.  Many  of  the  hymns  are  still  sung ;  some  few 
are  sung  quite  widely.  But  the  latest  American  Baptist 
hymnal  ( Sursum  Cor  da,  1898)  contains  but  seven  of  the 
hymns  of  Theodosia  in  a  total  of  eight  hundred  and 
fifty-six.  Even  that  diminished  number  is  somewhat 
larger  than  the  average  in  recent  hymnals. 

Of  Miss  Steele’s  hymns  still  in  use  the  one  perhaps 
best  known,  and  even  loved  for  its  tender  grace,  is  that 
generally  made  to  begin,  “  Father,  whate’er  of  earthly 
bliss”  ( The  Hymnal ,  No.  5  1 1 ).  Another  of  her  hymns, 
beginning  “Now  I  resolve  with  all  my  heart”  ( The 
Hymnal ,  No.  314),  is  by  many  associated  with  their  first 
Communion.  And  it  is  quite  possible  that  some  who 
use  the  hymnals  would  welcome  a  larger  number  of 
Miss  Steele’s  hymns  than  they  find  there.  If  these  are 
possibly  too  inward,  and  even  pensive,  for  congregational 
use,  it  may  well  be  that  they  have  a  further  mission  for 
private  use,  especially  in  cheering  the  sick  room. 

Miss  Steele  must  always  remain  a  figure  of  unique 
interest  in  hymnody.  She  is  still  the  representative 
Baptist  hymn  writer.  She  was,  too,  the  first  of  her  sex 
to  gain  prominence  in  the  hymn  books.  But  her  special 
preeminence  is  independent  of  her  being  either  Baptist  or 
woman  :  it  lies  in  the  extraordinary  extent  of  the  contri¬ 
bution  she  was  permitted  to  make  to  the  hymnody  of  the 
Church. 


196 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Anne  Steele  was  the  daughter  of  William  Steele,  a 
successful  timber  merchant,  who  was  at  the  same  time 
pastor,  without  salary,  of  a  Baptist  church  in  the  village 
of  Broughton,  England.  Broughton  lies  about  midway 
between  the  two  cathedral  towns  of  Salisbury  and  Win¬ 
chester.  Mr.  Garrett  H order  has  described  it  as  “  one 
long  straggling  street  of  cottages,  mostly  thatched,  with 
here  and  there  a  more  pretentious  house.”  In  a  quaint 
stone  house  in  the  centre  of  the  village  Anne  was  born 
in  May,  1717,  and  lived  for  half  a  century.  Anne’s 
father  had  succeeded  his  own  uncle  in  the  pastorate  at 
Broughton,  and  her  mother  was  the  daughter  of  another 
Baptist  clergyman,  so  that  Anne’s  religious  heritage  may 
be  described  as  well  within  the  limits  of  that  faith  and 
communion.  When  she  was  but  three  years  old  her 
mother  died,  and  from  her  seventh  year  Anne  was 
brought  up  by  a  stepmother,  with  much  anxiety  both  for 
her  spiritual  and  bodily  health.  Of  physical  health  there 
seemed  little  prospect  in  a  childhood  threatened  with 
consumption,  and  even  that  was  lessened  by  a  serious 
injury  to  her  hip.  This  accident  happened  to  her  in 
1835,  within  a  few  weeks  after  her  father  had  broken  his 
leg  in  a  fall  from  his  horse.  The  coincidence  gave  occa¬ 
sion  for  a  quaint  entry  in  the  diary  of  Anne’s  stepmother 
(reported  by  Mr.  Horder)  :  “  I  desired  our  Heavenly 
Father  to  heal  all  our  family’s  infirm  limbs.”  The 
shadow  of  a  greater  grief  fell  on  Miss  Steele  soon  after, 
when  the  young  man  she  was  to  marry  was  drowned 
while  bathing  in  the  river  on  the  day  before  that  appointed 
for  the  wedding. 

o 


FATHER  OF  MERCIES,  IN  THY  WORD 


197 


Thus  feeble  in-  body  and  chastened  in  spirit,  though 
never  losing  altogether  her  natural  gift  of  cheerfulness, 
Miss  Steele  led  a  retired  life  confined  almost  exclusively 
to  her  own  village.  She  never  married  :  the  title  “  Mrs.,” 


MISS  STEELE’S  BIRTHPLACE 

so  often  given  her  in  the  older  books  being  but  a  courtesy 
title,  then  often  applied  to  single  ladies.  She  had  been  a 
faithful  member  of  her  father’s  church  since  the  age  of 
fourteen,  and  as  daughter  of  a  village  pastor  she  employed 


198 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


herself  in  many  quiet  ministries  of  service  among  the 
sick  and  afflicted  about  her.  Her  pleasures  were  in  her 
friends  and  in  the  exercise  of  her  poetical  talents.  While 
her  writings  have  not  unnaturally  a  tone  of  pensiveness 
and  of  gentle  patience,  they  show  nowhere  the  least  trace 
of  the  bitterness  of  defeat.  No  one  can  read  them  with¬ 
out  a  kindly  regard  for  her  beautiful  spirit.  In  every 
experience  her  faith  was  supreme.  It  sustained  her  in 
the  end  through  years  when  she  was  confined  to  her 
room  in  great  bodily  suffering,  and  it  spoke  to  those 
about  her  in  her  last  words  :  “  I  know  that  my  Redeemer 
liveth.”  Miss  Steele  died  in  November,  1 778,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-one,  in  her  brother’s  house  in  Broughton,  where 
she  had  gone  at  her  father’s  death  a  few  years  before,  and 
where  she  had  received  affectionate  care.  Her  body 
was  laid  in  Broughton  churchyard,  and  on  her  tomb¬ 
stone  are  the  words  : — 

“  Silent  the  lyre,  and  dumb  the  tuneful  tongue, 

That  sung  on  earth  her  great  Redeemer’s  praise ; 

But  now  in  heaven  she  joins  the  angelic  song, 

In  more  harmonious,  more  exalted  lays.” 


No  portrait  of  Miss  Steele  is  known  to  the  present 
writer,  and  from  her  sensitive  modesty  and  seclusion  it 
may  perhaps  be  inferred  that  none  was  taken.  Other¬ 
wise  it  would  be  hard  to  commend  her  good  friend  Dr. 
Evans  in  his  choice  of  a  frontispiece  for,  the  volume  of 
her  “  Remains  ”  which  he  published  after  her  death. 
Only  a  sepulchral  urn  represents  the  poetess,  to  which  a 
stilted  female  figure  appeals  with  outstretched  hands  and 
the  legend : — 


“  Forgive  the  wish  that  would  have  kept  thee  here.” 


FATHER  OF  MERCIES,  IN  THY  WORD  1 99 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  Do  the  Scriptures  form  a  suitable  subject  for  a 
hymn  ?  Has  the  subject  a  poetical  as  well  as  spiritual 
side,  and  is  it  a  subject  one  cares  to  sing  of?  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  there  are  but  few  desirable  hymns  on  the 
Scriptures.  Is  not  this  hymn  one  of  the  best?  Notice 


MISS  STEELE’S  BIBLE 


how  it  relates  the  Scriptures  to  God  the  Father,  Son, 
and  Holy  Ghost. 

(2)  How  can  the  decreased  use  of  Miss  Steele  s 
hymns  be  explained?  The  following  may  be  suggested 
for  consideration  as  possibly  affecting  it :  Changes  in  the 
standard  of  literary  merit ;  changes  in  religious  feeling 
and  in  ways  of  expressing  it ;  and  the  enormous  in- 


200 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


crease  in  the  number  of  available  hymns,  but  a  very 
small  part  of  which  can  be  included  in  our  hymn  books. 

(3)  Does  it  seem  likely  that  any  single  writer  of  the 
present  day  could  gain  such  preeminence  as  was  ac¬ 
corded  Miss  Steele  ;  or  that  the  Church  would  be  willing 
to  receive  so  large  a  proportion  of  its  hymns  from  one 
hand  ?  Of  course  the  use  of  Dr.  Watts’s  hymns  was 
far  more  extended  and  exclusive.  But  then  he  may  be 
said  to  have  headed  a  revolution  in  psalmody,  while 
Miss  Steele  at  the  best  must  rank  as  one  of  his  followers 
rather  than  as  an  original  force.  It  was  undoubtedly 
the  sentimental  touch  and  her  evangelical  fervor  that 
won  the  day.  She  has  been  compared  to  Miss  Haver- 
gal,  and  the  latter  has  been  called  “  Our  Theodosia  of 
the  nineteenth  century.” 

(4)  This  hymn  had  originally  twelve  verses,  of  which 
only  six  came  into  use.  One  of  the  omitted  verses  is 
shown  in  the  facsimile.  Does  it  strengthen  the  hymn  ? 


XIX 


O  DAY  OF  REST  AND  GLADNESS 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  O  day  of  rest  and  gladness, 

O  day  of  joy  and  light, 

O  balm  of  care  and  sadness, 

Most  beautiful,  most  bright ; 

On  thee  the  high  and  lowly, 
Through  ages  joined  in  tune, 

Sing  Holy,  Holy,  Holy, 

To  the  great  God  Triune. 

2  On  thee,  at  the  creation, 

The  light  first  had  its  birth  ; 

On  thee,  for  our  salvation, 

Christ  rose  from  depths  of  earth  ; 
On  thee  our  Lord,  victorious, 

The  Spirit  sent  from  heaven ; 
And  thus  on  thee,  most  glorious, 

A  triple  light  was  given. 

3  Thou  art  a  port  protected 

From  storms  that  round  us  rise ; 
A  garden  intersected 

With  streams  of  Paradise  ; 

Thou  art  a  cooling  fountain 
In  life’s  dry,  dreary  sand  ; 

From  thee,  like  Pisgah’s  mountain, 
We  view  our  promised  land. 


201 


202 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  To-day  on  weary  nations 

The  heavenly  manna  falls : 

To  holy  convocations 

The  silver  trumpet  calls, 
Where  gospel  light  is  glowing 
With  pure  and  radiant  beams, 
And  living  water  flowing 

With  soul-refreshing  streams. 


5  New  graces  ever  gaining 

From  this  our  day  of  rest, 

We  reach  the  rest  remaining 
To  spirits  of  the  blest. 

To  Holy  Ghost  be  praises, 

To  Father,  and  to  Son ; 

The  Church  her  voice  upraises 
To  Thee,  blest  Three  in  One. 

Rev.  Christopher  Wordsworth,  1862 

Note. — Five  verses  of  the  original  six :  the  omitted  verse  may  be  found 
under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion.”  The  text  is  taken  from 
the  author’s  Holy  Year. 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

The  Duke  of  Wellington  said  in  1827  of  Dr.  Words¬ 
worth,  the  Master  of  Trinity  College,  “  I  consider  him 
to  be  the  happiest  man  in  the  kingdom  ” ;  and  being 
asked  why,  the  Duke  answered,  “  Because  each  of  his 
three  sons  has  this  year  got  a  university  prize  !”  Of  the 
three,  Christopher,  the  youngest,  born  in  1807,  was  the 
author  of  this  hymn.  He  was  athletic  as  well  as 
scholarly,  and  liked  to  tell  how  he  “  caught-out  Man¬ 
ning  ”  (the  future  Cardinal)  at  a  cricket  match.  His 
career  at  Winchester  and  at  Cambridge  University  was 
one  of  extraordinary  distinction,  and  at  its  close  he  re¬ 
mained  as  Fellow  of  Trinity  College  and  assistant  tutor. 


O  DAY  OF  REST  AND  GLADNESS 


203 


Before  he  was  thirty  he  was  head-master  of  a  great 
school,  Harrow.  The  fourteen  years  of  his  mastership 
there  may  be  called  also  a  part  of  his  own  education. 
He  undertook  a  reformation  of  the  school  in  manners 
and  discipline  with  more  earnestness  than  suavity ;  and 
though  at  the  end  of  his  anxious  years  there  he  left  the 
school  smaller  than  he  found  it,  he  took  with  him  to  a 
larger  life  new  acquirements  of  tact  and  forbearance. 

In  1844  Sir  Robert  Peel  made  him  a  Canon  of  West¬ 
minster  Abbey.  In  that  position  he  felt  called  upon  to 


BISHOP  WORDSWORTH 


resist  the  appointment  of  Dr.  Arthur  Stanley  as  Dean 
with  one  of  the  “  pamphlets  ”  inevitable  in  English 
church  controversy.  Bitterly  opposed  as  he  was  to  the 
latitudinarianism  for  which  Stanley  stood,  he  tempered 
his  earnestness  with  the  courtesy  he  had  learned  at 
Harrow,  and  remained  always  on  the  best  terms  with 


204 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


the  new  Dean.  From  1850  for  nineteen  years  Canon 
Wordsworth  was  pastor  of  a  country  charge,  which  had 
the  striking  name  of  Stanford-in-the-Vale-cum-Goosey. 
Here  he  lived  except  when  on  duty  at  the  Abbey,  and 
here  he  accomplished  an  enormous  amount  of  scholarly 
work.  He  had  already  gained  a  high  position  as  church¬ 
man  and  scholar,  writer  and  preacher,  when  in.  1869  Mr. 
Disraeli  appointed  him  Bishop  of  Lincoln.  His  ad¬ 
ministration  of  this  large  diocese  was  both  strenuous  and 
successful  until  his  strength  failed  in  old  age.  He  died 
on  March  21st,  1885. 

Christopher  Wordsworth’s  fame  as  man  of  letters  and 
bishop  is  greater  than  as  a  writer  of  hymns.  The  mass 
of  his  published  work  is  very  great  and  its  quality  very 
high.  His  earlier  work  was  in  the  lines  of  classical 
study,  and  his  book  on  Greece  itself  has  obtained  some¬ 
thing  of  the  position  of  a  “  classic.”  But  his  two  life¬ 
long  enthusiams  were  for  "  Church  Principles  ”  and 
Holy  Scripture.  And  his  literary  work,  covering  much 
ground  in  both  these  departments,  and  far  beyond  them, 
culminated  in  his  massive  and  learned  Commentary  on 
the  Whole  Bible. 

He  was  a  man  of  very  decided  opinions,  which  he 
liked  to  establish  when  he  could,  and  at  least  to  express 
when  he  could  do  no  more.  In  church  matters  he  was 
for  strict  and  unbending  adherence  to  the  Church  of 
England  pattern.  He  could  be  cordial  with  his  Methodist 
neighbors,  but  he  could  not  agree  that  their  ministers 
should  wear  the  title  “  Rev.”  He  bore  his  part  in  many 
a  controversy,  never  looking  to  see  which  side  was  the 
popular  one,  but  which  was  right.  And  if  he  struck 
stout  blows  for  his  somewhat  narrow  principles,  it  must 


O  BAY  OF  REST  AND  GLADNESS 


205 


also  be  said  of  him  that  he  kept  the  friendship  of  his 
opponents.  And  that  certainly  is  a  good  deal  to  say  of 
him. 

Bishop  Wordsworth’s  opinions  about  hymns  were  just 
as  decided  as  in  other  directions.  He  profoundly  re¬ 
gretted  that  “  Hymnology  has  been  allowed  to  fall  into 
the  hands  of  persons  who  had  little  reverence  for  the 
Authority  and  Teaching  of  the  ancient  Christian  Church, 
and  little  acquaintance  with  her  Literature.”  “  The  con¬ 
sequence  has  been,”  he  said,  “that  the  popular  Hym¬ 
nology  of  this  country  has  been  too  often  disfigured  by 
many  compositions  blemished  by  unsound  doctrine,  and 
even  by  familiar  irreverence  and  rhapsodical  fanaticism  ; 
or  else  it  too  often  rambles  on  in  desultory  and  unmean¬ 
ing  generalities,  or  sparkles  with  a  glitter  of  tinsel  imagery 
and  verbal  prettiness,  or  endeavors  to  charm  the  ear  with 
a  mere  musical  jingle  of  sweet  sounds,  not  edifying  the 
mind  or  warming  the  heart,  nor  ministering  to  the  glory 
of  Him  to  whom  all  Christian  worship  ought  to  be 
paid.” 

He  thought,  too,  that  our  modern  hymns  were  alto¬ 
gether  too  egotistical.  They  make  too  much  of  ourselves 
and  our  personal  feelings,  and  not  enough  of  God  and  His 
glory.  He  thought  hymns  of  personal  experience  might 
do  for  private  use.  But  for  public  use  in  church  wor¬ 
ship  he  did  not  approve  of  them.  Church  hymns  should 
be  churchly,  expressing  the  worship  of  the  congregation 
as  a  body  and  not  as  individuals.  He  would  drop  the 
pronouns  “  I  ”  and  “  mine  ”  from  our  hymns.  We  should 
forget  ourselves  and  thank  God  for  His  great  glory,  and 
praise  Him  not  for  mercies  to  us  as  individuals,  but  to 
the  whole  company  of  faithful  people.  And  especially 


1 


206 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


he  insisted  that  the  great  office  and  use  of  hymns  was  to 
set  forth  plainly  and  emphatically  the  teachings  of  the 
Scriptures  and  the  Prayer  Book.  The  hymns  should 
teach  the  people  the  facts  and  doctrines  of  Christianity, 
and  make  “these  glorious  truths  .  .  .  the  subject  of 
public  praise  and  thanksgiving  to  Almighty  God.”  His 
idea  was  that  the  hymns  for  each  day  for  which  the 
Prayer  Book  provided  services  should  set  forth  the 
meaning  and  lesson  of  that  which  the  day  commemorated. 

The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

By  way  of  carrying  out  his  views  in  hymnody  Bishop 
Wordsworth  (while  still  Canon  of  Westminster)  prepared 
a  hymn  book  called  The  Holy  Yea r,  and  published  it  in 
1862.  For  this  book  he  wrote  one  hundred  and  seven¬ 
teen  original  hymns,  and  for  a  later  edition  ten  more. 
All  of  them  are  good  if  looked  at  from  the  author’s 
standpoint.  But  some  things  are  best  taught  in  prose, 
and  when  an  effort  is  made  to  put  them  into  verse  the 
verse  becomes  prosy.  And  some  of  Bishop  Words¬ 
worth’s  hymns  are  prosaic  and  labored.  He  had,  never¬ 
theless,  a  vein  of  poetry  in  him  (he  was  the  nephew  and 
biographer  of  Wordsworth,  the  great  poet),  and  his  best 
hymns  are  excellent,  not  only  from  his  standpoint,  but 
from  any  standpoint. 

It  cannot  be  said  that  The  Holy  Year  in  its  entirety 
ever  won  much  favor.  Its  title  and  its  method  of  furnish¬ 
ing  a  hymn  for  each  day  and  occasion  for  which  the 
Prayer  Book  provided  services  at  once  challenged  com¬ 
parison  with  Keble’s  Christian  Year.  The  inevitable 
results  of  such  a  comparison  were  once  for  all  expressed 
by  saying  that  The  Christian  Year  was  written  by  a  poet 


O  DA  Y  OF  BEST  AND  GLADNESS 


207 


with  a  strong  theological  bias,  and  that  The  Holy  Year 
was  written  by  a  theologian  whose  nature  possessed 
many  poetical  elements  and  sympathies,  but  who  is  at 
times  deficient  in  the  accomplishment  of  verse.  Mr. 
Keble  himself,  in  a  letter  to  Canon  Wordsworth  acknowl- 
edging  the  receipt  of  a  copy  of  The  Holy  Year ,  remarked 
that  to  judge  of  it  properly  it  must  take  at  least  a  year 
to  read;  for  every  hymn,  of  course,  should  be  read  on 
its  own  day  as  a  flower  to  be  fully  prized  must  be 


ftisflrjo'Im.e, 

jFintaln, 


AUTOGRAPH  LINES  OF  THE  HYMN 


208 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  studied  in  situ It  may  be  that  the  general  reading  of 
the  book  was  more  hasty.  The  general  verdict  certainly 
was  that  its  use  in  worship  would  be  calculated  to  correct 
some  infelicities  of  praise  by  killing  the  spirit  of  song 
itself. 

“  O  Day  of  Rest  and  Gladness  ”  was  number  one  in 
The  Holy  Year ,  appearing  under  the  head  of  “  Sunday,” 
and  certainly  it  was  a  real  inspiration.  Any  one  who 
loves  the  Lord’s  Day  is  pretty  sure  to  love  the  hymn. 
It  began  to  be  copied  into  other  hymn  books  almost 
immediately,  and  is  now  in  general  use  in  all  the 
churches.  It  was  introduced  into  this  country  in  1865 
in  Songs  for  the  Sanctuary.  Dr.  Charles  S.  Robinson, 
the  editor  of  that  book,  stated  that  he  found  the  hymn 
upon  the  cover  of  a  religious  tract  in  London.  The 
words  were  set  by  him  to  Lowell  Mason’s  tune,  Men- 
debras,  and  the  association  of  the  two  has  been  popular 
ever  since. 

A  friend  of  Bishop  Wordsworth  has  written  down  a 
reminiscence  which  brings  us  a  little  closer  to  the  mak¬ 
ing  of  the  hymn  than  merely  reading  a  printed  copy  of 
it  can  do.  His  friend  writes  :  “  I  was  with  him  in  the 
library  when  he  put  his  arm  in  mine,  saying,  ‘  Come  up¬ 
stairs  with  me ;  the  ladies  are  going  to  sing  a  hymn  to 
encourage  your  labors  for  God’s  holy  day.’  We  all 
then  sang  from  the  manuscript  this  hymn.  I  was  in 
raptures  with  it.  It  was  some  days  before  I  knew  it  was 
written  by  himself.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  One  verse  of  the  hymn  (the  original  fourth)  was 
omitted  from  The  Hymnal.  It  reads  as  follows  : — 


O  DAY  OF  EEST  AND  GLADNESS  20g 

“  4  Thou  art  a  holy  ladder, 

Where  Angels  go  and  come ; 

Each  Sunday  finds  us  gladder, 

Nearer  to  Heaven,  our  home. 

A  day  of  sweet  refection 
Thou  art,  a  day  of  love ; 

A  day  of  Resurrection 

From  earth  to  heaven  above.” 

Is  this  verse  as  good  as  the  others  ?  and  if  not,  why 
not  ? 

(2)  In  our  time,  when  the  Lord’s  Day  is  threatened 
on  all  sides,  we  could  hardly  make  too  much  of  a  good, 
effective  Sunday  hymn.  Is  there  any  other  hymn  which 
embodies  so  happily  the  true  spirit  of  the  Lord’s  Day  ? 
Note  the  “triple  light”  from  heaven  falling  upon  the 
day,  and  the  triple  response  of  men’s  hearts  in  rest, 
gladness,  and  worship. 

(3)  What  is  to  be  said  of  Bishop  Wordsworth’s  views 
of  avoiding  personal  hymns  in  public  worship  ?  Is  it 
true  that  our  favorite  hymns  are  too  egotistical  ?  It 
would  be  worth  one’s  while  to  make  a  list  of  his  own 
favorites  to  discover  how  large  a  proportion  have  him¬ 
self  for  their  theme,  and  also  to  examine  Bishop  Words¬ 
worth’s  hymns  (there  are  eleven  in  The  Hymnal — see 
its  Index  of  Authors),  all  of  which  are  entirely  free  from 
that  personal  element. 

(4)  There  cannot  be  any  question  as  to  the  teaching 
power  of  hymns.  (“  In  all  ages  popular  songs,  sacred 
and  secular,  have  been  fhe  most  effective  teachers.” 
And  see  Colossians  iii.  16.)  If  Christians  realized  this, 
would  they  not  be  much  more  particular  as  to  the 
character  of  the  hymns  that  are  sung?  But,  after  all,  is 
not  the  teaching  power  of  hymns  only  one  side  of  their 


14 


210 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


influence  and  importance  ?  And  did  not  Bishop  Words¬ 
worth  make  too  much  of  that  side  when  he  claimed 
that  the  first  purpose  of  a  hymn  was  to  teach  sound 
doctrine  ? 

(5)  In  The  Holy  Year  are  many  hymns  no  one  cares 
to  sing.  Here  is  a  specimen  verse  of  one : — 

“  Man  fell  from  grace  by  carnal  appetite, 

And  forfeited  the  Garden  of  Delight ; 

To  fast  for  us  our  second  Adam  deigns, 

These  forty  days,  and  Paradise  regains.” 

Can  you  contrast  this  with  a  verse  of  “  O  Day  of  Rest 
and  Gladness  ”  to  show  why  one  is  hymn-like  and  the 
other  not  ?  People  often  say  to  their  pastor,  “  Please  do 
not  give  out  didactic  hymns  !”  What  do  they  mean  by 
“  didactic  hymns  ”  ? 


XX 


TAKE  MY  LIFE,  AND  LET  IT  BE 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

i  Take  my  life,  and  let  it  be 
Consecrated,  Lord,  to  Thee. 

Take  my  moments  and  my  days ; 
Let  them  flow  in  ceaseless  praise. 


2  Take  my  hands,  and  let  them  move 
At  the  impulse  of  Thy  love. 

Take  my  feet,  and  let  them  be 
Swift  and  beautiful  for  Thee. 

3  Take  my  voice,  and  let  me  sing, 
Always,  only,  for  my  King. 

Take  my  lips,  and  let  them  be 
Filled  with  messages  from  Thee. 


4  Take  my  silver  and  my  gold ; 

Not  a  mite  would  I  withhold. 

Take  my  intellect,  and  use 

Every  power  as  Thou  shalt  choose. 

5  Take  my  will,  and  make  it  Thine  ; 

It  shall  be  no  longer  mine. 

Take  my  heart,  it  is  Thine  own  ; 

It  shall  be  Thy  royal  throne. 


2U 


212 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


6  Take  my  love  ;  my  Lord,  I  pour 
At  Thy  feet  its  treasure-store. 

Take  myself,  and  I  will  be 
Ever,  only,  all  for  Thee. 

Frances  Ridley  Havergal,  1874 

NOTE. — The  text  is  that  of  Miss  Havergal’s  Songs  of  Grace  and  Glory  and 
of  the  authorized  edition  of  her  Poetical  Works.  As  a  poem 
she  arranged  it  in  couplets ;  as  a  hymn,  in  four-line  verses. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

This  hymn  of  Frances  Ridley  Havergal  records  a  deep 
experience  in  her  own  spiritual  life,  of  the  sort  that  most 
of  us  prefer  to  hide  among  the  secrets  of  the  soul.  But 
Miss  Havergal  both  spoke  and  wrote  freely  of  the  experi¬ 
ence,  and  gave  an  account  of  the  hymn’s  origin.  It 
was  her  way  to  be  perfectly  outspoken  about  such 
matters,  because  she  thought  her  frankness  would  prove 
helpful  to  others.  And  after  her  death  her  family,  no 
doubt  for  the  same  reason,  opened  to  the  world  the  last 
reserves  of  her  soul,  and  printed  her  most  intimate  letters 
and  conversations.  We  are  thus  relieved  of  any  sense 
of  intrusion  in  our  study  of  the  hymn. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  year  1873  a  little  book  that 
came  into  Miss  Havergal’s  hands  awakened  within  her 
great  longings  for  unreached  depths  of  spiritual  experi¬ 
ence  and  a  fuller  entrance  into  God’s  peace.  It  was  not 
long  before  she  received  what  she  called  “  the  blessing,” 
that  lifted  her  whole  nature  into  sunshine,  and  threw  an 
uninterrupted  gladness  over  the  remaining  years  of  her 
life.  “It  was  on  Advent  Sunday,  December  2nd,  1873,” 
she  wrote  her  sister,  “  I  first  saw  clearly  the  blessedness 
of  true  consecration.  I  saw  it  as  a  flash  of  electric  light, 
and  what  you  see,  you  can  never  unsee.  There  must 


TAKE  MY  LIFE ,  AND  LET  IT  BE 


213 


“  be  full  surrender  before  there  can  be  full  blessedness. 
God  admits  you  by  the  one  into  the  other.”  It  is 
this  full  surrender  of  herself  to  which  she  then  attained 
that  is  recorded  and  expressed  in  the  hymn. 

The  hymn  was  written  while  on  a  visit  to  Arely  House, 
on  February  4th,  1874.  Miss  Havergal  afterward  gave 
the  following  account  of  the  circumstances :  “  Perhaps 
you  will  be  interested  to  know  the  origin  of  the  consecra¬ 
tion  hymn, ‘  Take  my  life.’  I  went  for  a  little  visit  of  five 


days.  There  were  ten  persons  in  the  house,  some  un¬ 
converted  and  long  prayed  for,  some  converted  but  not 
rejoicing  Christians.  He  gave  me  the  prayer,  ‘  Lord,  give 
me  all  in  this  house  !’  And  He  just  did !  Before  I  left 
the  house  every  one  had  got  a  blessing.  The  last  night 
of  my  visit  I  was  too  happy  to  sleep,  and  passed  most 
of  the  night  in  praise  and  renewal  of  my  own  consecra¬ 
tion,  and  these  little  couplets  formed  themselves  and 
chimed  in  my  heart  one  after  another,  till  they  finished 
with,  4  Ever ,  only,  ALL  for  Thee  !’  ” 

Miss  Havergal  had  her  own  characteristic  way  of 


214 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


writing  hymns ;  and  here  again  it  will  be  best  to  let  her 
speak  for  herself :  “  Writing  is  praying  with  me,  for  I 
never  seem  to  write  even  a  verse  by  myself,  and  feel  like 
a  little  child  writing ;  you  know  a  child  would  look  up 
at  every  sentence  and  say,  ‘  And  what  shall  I  say  next  ?’ 
That  is  just  what  I  do  ;  I  ask  that  at  every  line  He  would 
give  me  not  merely  thoughts  and  power,  but  also  every 
word ,  even  the  very  rhymes.  Very  often  I  have  a  most 
distinct  and  happy  consciousness  of  direct  answers.” 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

It  has  been  said  of  Miss  Havergal  that  she  was  born 
in  an  atmosphere  of  hymns.  Her  father,  the  Rev.  Wil- 
liam  Henry  Havergal,  certainly  wrote  many,  but  is  now 
best  remembered  for  his  services  to  church  music  and  by 
his  tunes  “  Evan,”  “  Zoan,”  “  Patmos,”  and  others.  She 
was  baptized  by  another  hymn  writer,  the  Rev.  John 
Cawood,  author  of  “  Hark !  What  Mean  those  Holy 
Voices?”  ( The  Hymnal ,  No.  169),  and  “Almighty  God, 
Thy  Word  is  Cast”  (The  Hymnal ,  No.  74). 

Miss  Havergal  was  born  in  the  rectorv  of  the  little 
English  village  of  Astley,  December  14th,  1836.  The 
family  removed  to  the  city  of  Worcester  in  1845,  when 
her  father  became  rector  of  one  of  its  churches.  The 
story  of  her  child  life  there,  its  joys  and  griefs,  and  the 
beginnings  of  her  work  for  others  in  the  Sunday-school 
and  “  The  Flannel  Petticoat  Society,”  Miss  Havergal 
herself  has  told  in  The  Four  Happy  Days.  She  went 
away,  first  to  an  English  school,  under  whose  strong 
religious  influences  she  began  “  to  have  conscious  faith 
and  hope  in  Christ,”  and  afterward  to  a  school  in 
Germany. 


MISS  HAVERGAL 


2l6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


With  a  real  love  of  learning  and  an  ambition  to  make 
the  most  of  herself,  she  carried  on  her  studies  until  she 
became  a  very  accomplished  woman.  She  was  at  home 
in  Hebrew  and  Greek  as  well  as  in  modern  languages.  In 
music  she  cultivated  her  special  gift  to  such  a  degree 
that  she  was  sought  after  as  a  solo  singer  in  public  con¬ 
certs  ;  and  she  became  a  brilliant  performer  on  the  piano. 
How  she  did  it  may  be  gathered  from  her  poem  “  The 
Moonlight  Sonata.”  Her  own  sense  of  power  in  her 
music  and  the  delight  of  public  applause  enforced  the 
advice  from  professional  sources  that  she  make  music 
her  career.  She  knew,  too,  that  she  held  the  pen  of  a 
ready  writer  and  the  promise  of  poetic  achievement;  and 
when  there  is  added  the  influence  upon  her  of  marked 
social  attentions  evoked  by  the  charm  of  her  personality, 
and  quickening  her  natural  fondness  for  life  and  gayety, 
it  will  readily  be  understood  that  for  a  while  the  precise 
turn  her  life  would  take  seemed  somewhat  problematical. 

But  it  was  never  really  in  question.  Love  and  service 
were  the  only  ideals  that  could  satisfy  her  nature,  and 
to  these  she  yielded  herself  so  completely  as  to  efface 
all  other  ambitions.  Her  gifts  were  thenceforward 
“  Kept  for  the  Master’s  use.”  She  considered  literal 
“  Singing  for  Jesus  ”  her  most  direct  mission  from  Him, 
and  after  1873  sang  nothing  but  sacred  music,  and  that 
only  for  spiritual  purposes.  Her  great  work  was  that  of 
personal  spiritual  influence  upon  others,  and  was  carried 
forward  to  the  extreme  limit  of  her  strength  by  writing 
many  leaflets  and  books  of  prose  and  poetry,  by  per¬ 
sonal  interviews,  addresses,  teaching,  society  work,  and 
correspondence. 

Many  of  her  hymns  were  written  for  a  hymn  book, 


TAKE  MY  LIFE ,  AND  LET  IT  BE 


21 7 


Songs  of  Grace  and  Glory ,  of  which  she  was  one  of  the 
editors.  This  was  a  large  and  carefully  edited  book, 
ardently  evangelical  in  its  point  of  view,  but  it  took  no 
permanent  place  in  the  Church  of  England.  Many  of 
Miss  Havergal’s  poems  were  originally  printed  as  leaflets. 
From  time  to  time  she  collected  them  into  volumes,  of 
which  Ministry  of  Song  (1869),  Under  the  Surface  (1874), 
and  Loyal  Responses  (1878),  are  the  more  important. 
After  her  death  her  complete  poetical  writings  were 
gathered  together  and  published  by  her  sister.  They 
made  a  bulky  volume,  and  included,  one  would  think,  a 
great  deal  of  verse  which  its  author  would  not  have 
considered  worthy  of  appearing  there.  She  also  edited 
the  Psalmody  of  her  father,  to  whose  memory  she  was 
devoted,  and  whose  services  to  church  music  she  lost  no 
opportunity  of  magnifying. 

Miss  Havergal’s  ideals  and  methods  in  writing  were 
not  those  of  an  artist.  And,  though  her  beautiful  spirit  is 
beyond  criticism,  it  is  only  right  to  say  that  the  cultiva¬ 
tion  of  poetic  art  to  the  highest  excellence  (as  in  the 
case  of  Tennyson)  may  be  pursued  as  conscientiously, 
and  be  as  legitimate  a  consecration,  as  was  the  conscien¬ 
tious  suppression  of  the  art  instinct  in  Miss  Haveigal  s 
case.  And  while  her  hymns  have  been  of  great  in¬ 
fluence  and  won  a  wide  use,  it  remains  to  be  seen 
whether  that  influence  shall  be  permanent,  or  was  rather 
the  personal  influence  of  the  devoted  woman  herself. 
For  as  the  personal  influence  of  a  writer  fades  away,  his 
or  her  work  comes  to  be  judged  by  what  it  is  in  itself. 
And  one  hardly  feels  that  most  of  Miss  Havergal’s 
hymns  are  as  good  from  the  literary  standpoint  as  she 
was  capable  of  making  them.  Her  “  Golden  Harps  are 


218 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Sounding  ( The  Hymnal,  No.  702)  is  perhaps  the  best 
poetically,  and  seems  too  to  have  the  promise  of  longest 
life.  But  many  of  her  hymns  have  proved  helpful  to  the 
spiritual  life  of  others,  and  with  that  she  would  have  been 
abundantly  content. 

Miss  Havergal’s  later  years  were  spent  at  Leaming¬ 
ton,  her  last  days  at  Caswell  Bay,  Swansea,  Wales, 
where  she  had  gone  for  rest.  She  had  borne  a  full  share 
of  illnesses  and  suffering,  and,  though  exceptionally  sen¬ 
sitive  to  pain,  had  learned  not  only  to  carry  forward  her 
work  under  difficulties  but  also  to  find  gladness  in  her 
infirmities.  When  informed  of  the  dangerous  turn  of 
hei  last  illness,  she  answered,  “  If  I  am  going,  it  is  too 
good  to  be  true.”  Miss  Havergal  died  on  June  3rd, 
1879,  in  the  forty-third  year  of  her  age,  and  was  buried 
in  the  Astley  churchyard  beside  her  father  and  close  to 
the  church  and  home  of  her  childhood.  On  her  tomb¬ 
stone  is  carved,  by  her  own  desire,  her  favorite  text: 

The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  His  Son  cleanseth  us  from 
all  sin.” 


Some  Points  for  Discussion 

(1)  The  piopei  use  to  make  of  a  hymn  such  as  this 
deserves  more  thought  than  it  gets.  Miss  Havergal 
herself  meant  just  what  she  said  in  these  verses,  mid 
often  made  personal  use  of  them  to  see  how  far  her 
actual  living  measured  up  to  their  standard : — 

“  I  a  great  time  early  this  morning  renewing  the  never 
regretted  consecration.  I  seemed  led  to  run  over  the  ‘  Take 
my  life,’  and  could  bless  Him  verse  by  verse  for  having  led 
me  on  to  much  more  definite  consecration  than  even  when  I 
wrote  it,  voice,  gold,  intellect,  etc.  But  the  eleventh  couplet, 


TAKE  MY  LIFE ,  AND  LET  IT  BE 


219 


“  ‘love,’ — that  has  been  unconsciously  not  filled  up.  Some¬ 
how,  I  felt  mystified  and  out  of  my  depth  here  :  it  was  a  simple 
and  definite  thing  to  be  done ,  to  settle  the  voice,  or  silver 
and  gold  !  but  ‘  love  ’  ?  I  have  to  love  others,  and  I  do  ;  and 
I’ve  not  a  small  treasure  of  it,  and  even  loving  in  Him  does 
not  quite  meet  the  inner  difficulty.  ...  I  don’t  see  much 
clearer  or  feel  much  different ;  but  I  have  said  intensely  this 
morning,  ‘Take  my  love,’  and  He  knows  I  have.”  (From 
her  letter  of  December  2nd ,  1878.) 

Miss  Havergal  also  made  much  use  of  the  hymn  in 
her  consecration  meetings  : — 

“At  the  close  of  the  meeting,  my  sister  gave  to  each  one  a 
card  with  her  Consecration  hymn,  specially  prepared  and 
printed  for  this  evening.  Her  own  name  was  omitted,  and  a 
blank  space  left  for  signature.  As  she  gave  the  cards,  she 
asked  them  to  make  that  hymn  a  test  before  God,  and  if  they 
could  really  do  so,  to  sign  it  on  their  knees  at  home.  Then 
the  hymn  was  sung.”  ( From  a  memorandum  of  Miss 
M.  V.  G.  Havergal ,  April  17th ,  1879.) 

No  one  will  question  the  fitness  of  the  words  for  such 
uses.  But  to  encourage  a  promiscuous  assembly  or 
Sunday-school  to  sing  them,  without  special  spiritual 
preparation  or  without  any  common  purpose  or  feeling 
corresponding  to  them,  is  open  to  more  question.  The 
two  sides  of  the  question  may  be  presented  in  this  way. 
It  may  be  urged,  on  the  one  hand,  that  it  is  no  better  to 
make  to  God  promises  we  do  not  intend  to  keep,  or  to 
express  feelings  we  do  not  have,  in  song  than  it  is  in 
speech,  and  that  such  singing  breeds  insincerity.  It  may 
be  argued,  on  the  other  hand,  that  it  is  proper  to  sing 
hymns  expressing  purposes  more  definite  than  our  actual 


220 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


lesolutions  and  feelings  deeper  than  those  actually  mov¬ 
ing  us,  because  the  hymn  expresses  the  ideal  we  should 
aim  at,  and  singing  the  hymn  keeps  the  ideal  before  us, 
and  encourages  us  to  attempt  to  attain  it. 

(2)  Miss  Havergal  wrote  to  the  editor  of  a  hymn 
book  :  “  I  particularly  wish  that  hymn  kept  to  my  dear 
father’s  sweet  little  tune,  ‘  Patmos,’  which  suits  it  per¬ 
fectly.  So  please  substitute  that,  and  your  book  will  be 
the  gainer.”  She  was  grieved  whenever  she  found  that 
any  other  tune  had  taken  its  place  in  a  hymn  book.  Is 
“  Patmos  ”  a  satisfactory  setting  of  the  words ;  and  how 
far  should  we  allow  ourselves  to  be  influenced  by  Miss 
Havergal’s  wish  in  the  matter? 


XXI 


I  WOULD  NOT  LIVE  ALWAY ;  I  ASK  NOT  TO 

STAY 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

1  I  would  not  live  alway ;  I  ask  not  to  stay 
Where  storm  after  storm  rises  dark  o’er  the  way ; 

The  few  lurid  mornings  that  dawn  on  us  here 

Are  enough  for  life’s  woes,  full  enough  for  its  cheer. 

2  I  would  not  live  alway,  thus  fettered  by  sin; 

Temptation  without,  and  corruption  within  : 

E’en  the  rapture  of  pardon  is  mingled  with  fears, 

And  the  cup  of  thanksgiving  with  penitent  tears. 

3  I  would  not  live  alway ;  no,  welcome  the  tomb  : 

Since  Jesus  hath  lain  there,  I  dread  not  its  gloom  ; 

There  sweet  be  my  rest,  till  He  bid  me  arise 

To  hail  Him  in  triumph  descending  the  skies. 

4  Who,  who  would  live  alway,  away  from  his  God, 

Away  from  yon  heaven,  that  blissful  abode, 

Where  the  rivers  of  pleasure  flow  o’er  the  bright  plains, 
And  the  noontide  of  glory  eternally  reigns  ; 

5  Where  the  saints  of  all  ages  in  harmony  meet, 

Their  Saviour  and  brethren,  transported,  to  greet; 

While  the  anthems  of  rapture  unceasingly  roll, 

And  the  smile  of  the  Lord  is  the  feast  of  the  soul? 

Rev.  William  Augustus  Muhlenberg,  (about)  1824 

Note. — This  text  is  take  from  Hymns  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church 
1827.  Other  texts  are  referred  to  in  “  The  Story  of  the  Hymn. 

221 


222 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  Story  of  the  hymn 

A  hymn  so  deeply  tinged  with  melancholy  as  this  illus¬ 
trates  two  curious  facts.  One  is  that  the  saddest  poetry 
is  likely  to  be  written  by  the  youngest  poets ;  the  other, 
that  the  young  appreciate  such  poetry  more  than  the 
old.  The  brightness  of  youth  has  a  vein  of  melancholy 
running  through  it,  and  the  active  imagination  of  youth 
forecasts  the  sorrows  of  life ;  while  age,  which  has  actu¬ 
ally  experienced  them,  likes  to  be  as  cheerful  as  it  can. 
It  need  occasion  no  surprise,  therefore,  to  learn  that 
this  hymn  was  written  by  the  Rev.  William  Augustus 
Muhlenberg,  somewhere  in  his  twenties,  and  that,  as  he 
grew  older,  he  grew  to  dislike  it. 

He  came  to  dislike  the  hymn  itself,  thinking  it  did  not 
truly  represent  either  the  joys  or  the  opportunities  of 
the  earthly  life,  and  that  it  was  unduly  impatient  for  the 
joys  of  heaven.  To  the  end  of  his  life  Dr.  Muhlenberg 
kept  on  writing  new  versions  of  the  hymn  in  the  hope 
(quite  vain)  that  some  one  of  them  would  replace  the 
earlier  text  in  popular  favor.  Dr.  Philip  Schafif’s  bi¬ 
ographer  describes  a  luncheon  given  by  Dr.  William 
Adams  to  Dr.  Muhlenberg,  at  which  Dr.  Schaff  re¬ 
marked  to  him:  “Your  hymn,  ‘I  Would  Not  Live 
Alway/  makes  you  immortal.”  Dr.  Muhlenberg  pro¬ 
tested,  saying  that  he  hoped  to  make  changes  in  it  to 
bring  it  nearer  the  spirit  of  the  gospel.  Dr.  Adams  in¬ 
terrupted  the  conversation  with  the  remark,  “  Well,  you 
may  not  be  able  to  evangelize  the  hymn,  but  you  can¬ 
not  kill  it.” 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  came  also  to  dislike  the  popularity  of 
the  hymn,  which  from  the  very  first  was  amazing.  People 


/  WOULD  NOT  LIVE  AL  WA  V;  I  ASK  NOT  TO  STA  V  223 

would  seek  him  out  when  busy  with  other  things,  “just 
to  shake  hands,”  as  they  said,  “  with  the  author  of  ‘  I 
Would  Not  Live  Alway.’  ”  He  would  be  pointed  out 
and  introduced  as  “the  author  of  the  immortal  hymn,” 
etc.  “  One  would  think  that  hymn  the  one  work  of  my 
life,”  he  used  to  say. 

The  exact  date  of  the  hymn  is  uncertain.  In  his 
Story  of  the  Hymn  it  is  given  as  1824.  Several  of  the 
dates  there  are  wrong ;  but  this  one  is  perhaps  correct. 
In  regard  to  the  circumstances,  or  experience,  out  of 
which  the  hymn  grew,  there  has  been  and  continues  to 
be  a  conflict  of  opinion.  The  tradition  has  always  been 
that  it  was  occasioned  by  a  great  personal  disappoint¬ 
ment  suffered  by  its  author.  Dr.  Muhlenberg  was  well 
aware  of  this  tradition,  and  in  his  Story  of  the  Hymn 
took  occasion  to  contradict  it  in  the  following  terms: 
“The  leg-end  that  it  was  written  on  an  occasion  of 
private  grief  is  a  fancy.”  However  conclusive  this  may 
seem,  it  has  not  concluded  the  matter.  The  Rev. 
Frederick  M.  Bird,  in  his  essay  on  the  Hymnology  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church,  goes  so  far  as  to  say  that 
Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  assertion  “hardly  agrees  with  the 
clear  and  minute  recollections  of  persons  of  the  highest 
character  still  living,  and  who  knew  the  circumstances 
thoroughly.”  Two  remarks  seem  to  be  suggested  by 
this  statement.  One  is  that  the  persons  referred  to  may 
have  “  known  thoroughly  ”  Dr.  Muhlenburg’s  situation 
at  the  time  and  the  reality  of  his  private  grief,  and  yet 
would  not  seem  to  have  been  in  a  position  so  good  as 
his  for  knowing  the  exact  connection,  or  lack  of  it,  be¬ 
tween  the  grief  and  the  hymn.  The  other  remark  is 
that  while  we  too,  if  we  had  enjoyed  the  privilege  of 


224 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


knowing  who  the  unnamed  witnesses  were,  and  of  hear¬ 
ing  or  reading  the  exact  words  of  their  testimony,  might 
have  come  to  feel  it  more  trustworthy  than  Dr.  Muhlen¬ 
berg’s  recollections  after  so  many  years ;  yet,  in  the 
absence  of  such  opportunity,  we  feel  ourselves  bound 
by  the  explicit  denial  of  the  author  himself.  There 
will  always,  however,  be  many  among  the  lovers  of  the 
hymn  who  believe  the  legend  and  not  the  assertion. 
The  demand  for  a  specifically  romantic  origin  for  every 
individual  piece  of  verse  for  which  one  cares  is  unfailing. 
And  in  this  case  there  is  unhappily  an  apparent  reality 
in  the  private  grief  in  question,  finding,  as  alleged,  cor- 
roboiation  in  the  fact  that  Dr.  Muhlenberg  never  mar¬ 
ried  ,  theie  is  even  perhaps  a  coincidence  in  date  between 
the  sorrow  and  the  hymn.  Who  but  the  author  (and 
perhaps  not  he)  could  know  how  far  his  private  grief 
had  clouded  the  outlook  of  his  muse  upon  time  and 
the  eternal  ? 

For  the  next  step  in  the  history  of  the  hymn,  as  related 
by  Mr.  Bird,  the  authority  is  more  satisfying : — 

“It  was  written  at  Lancaster,  in  a  lady’s  album,  and 
began, — 


‘  I  would  not  live  alway.  No,  no,  holy  man. 

Not  a  day,  not  an  hour,  should  lengthen  my  span.’  * 

In  this  shape  it  seems  to  have  had  six  eight- line  stanzas. 
The  album  was  still  extant  in  1876,  at  Pottstown,  Pa., 
and  professed  to  contain  the  original  manuscript.  Said 
the  owner’s  sister,  ‘  It  was  an  impromptu.  He  had  no 
copy,  and  wanting  it  for  some  occasion,  he  sent  for 
the  album.  In  1826  he  entrusted  his  copy  to  a  friend, 
who  called  on  him  on  the  way  from  Harrisburg  to  Phila- 


/  WOULD  NOT  LIVE  ALWAY ;  L  ASK  NOT  TO  STAY  22HD 


delphia,  to  carry  to  the  ‘  Episcopal  Recorder/  and  in 
that  paper  it  appeared  June  3rd,  1826  (not  1824).  For 


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AUTOGRAPH  VERSES 


these  facts  we  have  the  detailed  statement  of  Dr.  John 
B.  Clemson,  of  Claymont,  Del.,  the  ambassador  men¬ 
tioned,  who  also  chances  to  have  preserved  that  volume 
of  the  paper.”  And  the  present  writer,  in  his  turn,  must 
rest  upon  the  authority  of  Mr.  Bird  (which,  indeed,  is 
is 


226 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


happily  high) ;  not  having  seen  the  album  nor  even 
chanced  upon  that  number  of  The  Episcopal  Recorder. 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  himself  has  told  us  how  his  poem 
first  gained  place  as  a  hymn.  From  the  paper,  in  which 
it  was  printed  anonymously,  it  was  adopted  by  a  sub¬ 
committee  among  the  hymns  to  be  passed  upon  by  the 
whole  committee  which  then  (1826)  was  engaged  in 
preparing  a  hymn  book  for  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church.  When  this  hymn  was  proposed,  “  one  of  the 
members  remarked  that  it  was  very  sweet  and  pretty, 
but  rather  sentimental ;  upon  which  it  was  unanimously 
thrown  out.  Not  suspected  as  the  author,  I  voted 
against  myself.  That,  I  supposed,  was  the  end  it.  The 
committee,  which  sat  until  late  at  night  at  the  house  of 
Bishop  White,  agreed  upon  their  report  to  the  Conven¬ 
tion,  and  adjourned.  But  the  next  morning  Dr.  Onder- 
donk  (who  was  not  one  of  their  number,  but  who,  on 
invitation,  had  acted  with  the  sub-committee,  which,  in 
fact,  consisted  of  him  and  myself)  called  on  me  to  inquire 
what  had  been  done.  Upon  my  telling  him  that  among 
the  rejected  hymns  was  this  one  of  mine,  he  said,  ‘  That 
will  never  do,’  and  went  about  among  the  members  of 
the  committee,  soliciting  them  to  restore  the  hymn  in 
their  report,  which  accordingly  they  did ;  so  that  to  him 
is  due  the  credit  of  giving  it  to  the  Church.”  It  was 
copied  almost  at  once  into  other  books,  and  soon  became 
one  of  the  most  popular  of  American  hymns. 

Fiver  since  1833  it  has  been  associated  with  the  melo¬ 
dious  tune  “  Frederick,”  composed  for  it  by  Mr.  George 
Kingsley,  and  printed  as  sheet  music  in  that  year.  Kings¬ 
ley  belonged  to  the  period  of  American  psalmody  when 
the  performances  of  soloists  and  quartettes  drowned  the 


TITLE-PAGE  OF  MR.  KINGSLEY’S  MUSIC 


228  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

voice  of  congregations.  The  standard  of  church  music 
did  not  differ  materially  from  that  of  parlor  music.  Like 
the  hymn  itself  his  tune  (even  to  the  vignette  on  the 
title)  reflects  the  religious  fashion  of  the  time.  The  two 
belong  together.  Several  editors  have  attempted  to  put 
a  newer  tune  in  the  place  of  Mr.  Kingsley’s.  It  was  in 
vain,  simply  because  words  and  melody  both  appeal  to 
the  same  taste.  They  are  not  likely  to  be  divoiced,  but 
to  live  or  die  together. 

The  history  of  the  text  is  somewhat  peculiar.  The 
original  written  in  the  album,  seems  to  have  been  in  six 
verses  of  eight  lines  each  ;  as  was  also  the  first  printed 
text  in  the  Recorder.  It  was  Dr.  Onderdonk  who 
selected  and  arranged  the  lines  into  four-line  veises  for 
the  Episcopalian  hymn  book,  Dr.  Muhlenberg  slightly 
revising  them.  So  far  as  the  public  is  concerned,  this  is 
the  only  text  of  the  hymn.  But  in  i860,  in  a  little  collec¬ 
tion  of  his  poems,  Dr.  Muhlenberg  printed  a  new  version, 
and  in  a  second  edition,  in  the  same  year,  added  a  post¬ 
script  to  that.  In  1871,  and  again  in  1876,  he  rewrote 
the  hymn.  It  was  not  vanity  but  conscientiousness  that 
inspired  so  much  thought  and  labor;  although  these 
were  quite  in  vain.  The  public  loved  the  earlier  version, 
and  took  no  interest  at  all  in  the  revisions.  The  auto¬ 
graph  verses  reproduced  in  this  Study  are  from  the 
version  of  1871. 

The  author  of  the  Hymn 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  was  born  in  Philadelphia,  September 
1 6th,  1796,  and  came  of  distinguished  stock.  His  great¬ 
grandfather  was  Dr.  Henry  M.  Muhlenberg,  founder  of 
the  Lutheran  Church  in  America;  his  grandfather  (Fred- 


230 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


erick  A.)  was  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives 
in  the  First  and  Second  Congresses  during  Washington’s 
first  administration.  In  his  boyhood  the  Lutheran  ser¬ 
vices  were  conducted  in  German,  of  which  he  was  igno¬ 
rant  ;  and  he  drifted  into  the  Episcopal  Church,  into 
whose  ministry  he  entered  in  1817.  He  was  ordained 
by  Bishop  White,  and  for  a  while  served  as  chaplain  to 
that  famous  prelate. 

In  1820  he  became  rector  of  St.  James’s  Church,  Lan¬ 
caster,  Pennsylvania.  It  was  there  he  began  his  labors 
for  a  better  church  hymnody,  publishing  his  Church 
Poetry ,  and  doing  much  for  that  cause.  While  there  he 
also  conceived  the  idea  of  a  school  under  church  auspices, 
where  education  should  be  distinctly  religious.  Such  a 
school  he  established  at  Flushing,  Long  Island,  and  gave 
to  it  fifteen  years  of  enthusiastic  toil.  When  circumstances 
compelled  him  to  abandon  it,  he  became  in  1846  rector 
of  a  church  in  New  York  City  founded  by  his  sister,  which 
he  developed  as  a  “  free  ”  church.  Here  he  organized 
the  first  Protestant  sisterhood,  and  established  St.  Luke’s 
Hospital,  in  which,  as  pastor,  he  spent  the  last  twenty 
years  of  his  life,  ministering  to  the  suffering.  In  these 
later  years  he  established  the  religious  industrial  com¬ 
munity  of  St.  Johnland  on  Long  Island. 

The  great  purposes  of  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  efforts  may 
be  summed  up  as  the  Christianizing  of  education,  the 
reunion  of  all  Christians  in  one  Evangelical  Catholic 
Church,  and  the  bettering  of  the  lot  of  the  poor.  To 
these  he  consecrated  his  life,  with  his  great  gifts  for 
originating  and  administering.  For  these  he  spent  his 
private  fortune,  of  which  he  left  behind  less  than  enough 
to  bury  him.  He  was  a  prophet,  and  saw  visions  of  a 


/  WOULD  NOT  LIVE  AL  WA  Y ;  I  ASK  NOT  TO  STA  Y  23 1 

holier  Church  than  any  on  the  earth,  more  catholic  of 
heart  and  more  helpful  of  hand.  He  thought  his  own 
denomination  called  to  lead  the  way,  and  committed  to 
it  his  visions  as  a  trust.  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  ideals  and 
influence  constitute  one  of  the  great  forces  now  at  work 
in  the  development  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church. 
Of  his  spiritual  greatness,  his  lovely  personality,  his 
saintliness,  his  utter  abnegation  of  self-interest,  it  seems 
hardly  possible  to  speak  too  warmly.  “  His  long  life 
was  one  stream  of  blessed  charity.”  Dr.  Muhlenberg 
died  at  St.  Luke’s  Hospital,  April  8th,  187;,  and  was 
buried  at  St.  Johnland. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  The  omission  of  this  hymn  from  the  latest  hymnal 
of  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  own  denomination  raises  the  ques¬ 
tion  of  its  fitness  to  serve  as  a  hymn  according  to  our 
present  standards  of  judgment.  Is  its  true  place  in  a 
hymn  book  for  congregational  use  or  in  a  book  of 

religious  poetry  for  private  use  ? 

(2)  There  is  a  more  important  question  :  Is  the  view 
of  life  expressed  in  the  hymn  wholesome  and  inspiring, 
or  is  it  morbid  and  enervating  ?  The  hymn  embodies 
what  seems  to  have  been  the  average  sentiment  at  that 
day  among  evangelical  Christians.  But  a  gieat  change 
has  come  over  evangelical  thought  about  this  life  and  the 
next.  If,  however,  the  “  other-worldliness  ”  of  that  gen¬ 
eration  seems  morbid  to  us,  it  may  be  that  to  them, 
looking  down  upon  us  now  from  that  other  woild,  the 
“  this-worldliness  ”  of  the  present  generation  seems  short¬ 
sighted,  to  say  the  least. 

(3)  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  desire  to  evangelize  his  hymn 


232 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


strikes  one  at  first  as  peculiar.  His  version  of  1871  was 
headed,  “‘I  Would  Not  Live  Alway  ’  Evangelized.” 
What  he  had  in  mind  is  doubtless  explained  by  the  fre¬ 
quent  saying  of  his  later  years  :  “  Paul’s  desire  to  ‘  depart 
and  be  with  Christ  ’  is  better  than  Job’s  ‘  I  would  not  live 
alway.’  ” 


XXII 


O  HELP  US,  LORD;  EACH  HOUR  OF  NEED 


The  text  of  the  Hymn 

1  O  help  us,  Lord;  each  hour  of  need 

Thy  heavenly  succor  give  : 

Help  us  in  thought,  and  word,  and  deed, 
Each  hour  on  earth  we  live. 

2  O  help  us  when  our  spirits  bleed, 

With  contrite  anguish  sore  ; 

And  when  our  hearts  are  cold  and  dead, 
O  help  us,  Lord,  the  more. 

3  O  help  us,  through  the  prayer  of  faith 

More  firmly  to  believe ; 

For  still,  the  more  the  servant  hath, 

The  more  shall  he  receive. 

4  If,  strangers  to  Thy  fold,  we  call, 

Imploring  at  Thy  feet 
The  crumbs  that  from  Thy  table  fall, 
’Tis  all  we  dare  entreat. 

5  But  be  it,  Lord  of  mercy,  all, 

So  Thou  wilt  grant  but  this : 

The  crumbs  that  from  Thy  table  fall 
Are  light,  and  life,  and  bliss. 


233 


234 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


6  O  help  us,  Jesus,  from  on  high; 

We  know  no  help  “but  Thee: 

O  help  us  so  to  live  and  die 
As  Thine  in  heaven  to  be. 

Rev.  Henry  Hart  Milman,  1827 

Note. — The  text  is  that  published  in  Bishop  Heber-’ s  Hymns ,  1827. 


The  Story  of  the  Hymn 

It  may  be  recalled  that  in  our  study  of  the  hymn 
“  From  Greenland’s  Icy  Mountains”  reference  was  made 
to  Bishop  Heber’s  favorite  project  of  a  literary  hymn 
book  for  the  Church  of  England,  a  hymn  book  to 
contain  only  good  poetry  as  well  as  good  devotion. 
And  now  our  study  of  this  hymn,  written  by  the  Rev. 
Henry  Hart  Milman,  brings  us  back  to  that  project  of 
his  friend. 

Heber  had  made  a  beginning  on  his  book,  at  least  as 
early  as  1 8 1 1,  by  writing  some  original  hymns  for  it. 
But  he  never  intended  to  follow  the  example  of  Dr. 
Watts  and  make  the  entire  book  consist  of  his  own 
hymns.  And  we  find  him,  in  1820,  casting  his  eyes 
about  the  literary  horizon  to  see  what  poets  could  be 
enlisted  in  his  scheme. 

There  was  no  dearth  of  poets  in  those  days.  And  it 
is  likely  that  Heber  knew  most  of  them,  for  he  had  be¬ 
gun  to  write  for  the  new  Quarterly  Review  of  Mr. 
Murray,  the  great  London  publisher,  whose  hospitable 
drawing-room  was  the  common  meeting  ground  of  the 
poets  of  the  time.  Keats,  Shelley,  and  Byron  were  all 
alive  in  1820,  but  no  one  then  or  now  would  be  likely  to 
think  of  them  in  connection  with  a  hymn  book.  Crabbe 
was  an  old  man,  whose  poetry  lay  behind  him.  Coleridge 


O  HELP  US,  LORD ;  EACH  HOUR  OF  NEED  235 

was  capable  of  writing  great  hymns,  but  it  was  in  vain 
to  ask  him  to  do  any  given  thing  at  a  given  time.  Keble 
at  that  time  was  actually  writing  The  Christian  Year,  but 
the  fact  was  known  to  very  few.  Montgomery,  distinct¬ 
ively  a  hymn  writer,  would  probably  be  passed  over  as 
out  of  sympathy  with  the  Church  of  England.  Words¬ 
worth,  Scott,  Campbell,  Moore,  Southey,  and  Milman 
were  the  six  who  remained,  conspicuous  and  possibly 
available. 

To  at  least  three  of  these  we  know  that  Heber  ap¬ 
pealed  to  furnish  hymns  for  his  book.  Scott  and 
Southey  both  promised  their  aid.  But  both  failed  him, 
although  some  unnamed  poet  did  send  in  contributions 
that  were  rejected  as  beneath  the  level  of  the  book.  To 
Milman,  whom  he  greatly  admired,  Heber  sent  in  1820 
an  earnest  request  for  hymns :  “  I  know  with  what 
facility  you  write  poetry,  and  all  the  world  knows  with 
what  success  you  write  religious  poetry.” 

And  Milman  did  not  fail  him.  In  May  of  the  year 
following  Heber  alludes  to  three  hymns  already  re¬ 
ceived  from  him,  one  of  them  the  now  familiar  “  Ride  on, 
Ride  on  in  Majesty”  ( The  Hymnal,  No.  214);  saying,  “  I 
rejoice  to  hear  so  good  an  account  of  the  progress  which 
your  Saint  [The  Martyr  of  Antioch]  is  making  towards 
her  crown,  and  feel  really  grateful  for  the  kindness  which 
enables  you,  while  so  occupied,  to  recollect  my  hymn 
book.  I  have  in  the  last  month  received  some  assistance 

from  - ,  which  would  once  have  pleased  me  well ; 

but  alas!  your  advent,  Good  Friday,  and  Palm  Sunday 
hymns  have  spoilt  me  for  all  other  attempts  of  the  sort. 
There  are  several  Sundays  yet  vacant,  and  a  good  many  of 
the  Saints’  days.  But  I  need  not  tell  you  that  any  of  the 


23&  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

“  other  days  will  either  carry  double,  or,  if  you  prefer  it, 
the  compositions  which  now  occupy  them  will  ‘  contract 
their  arms  for  you,  and  recede  from  as  much  of  heaven  ’ 
as  you  may  require.” 

The  hymn  “  O  Help  Us,  Lord  ;  Each  Hour  of  Need  ” 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  in  that  first  group,  but 
very  likely  it  was  one  of  a  second  group  acknowledged 
by  Heber  at  the  close  of  the  same  year.  He  writes  to 
Milman:  “You  have  indeed  sent  me  a  most  powerful 
remfoi  cement  to  my  piojected  hymn  book.  A  few  more 
such  hymns  and  I  shall  neither  need  nor  wait  for  the 
aid  of  Scott  and  Southey.  Most  sincerely,  I  have  not 
seen  any  lines  of  the  kind  which  more  completely  corre¬ 
spond  to  my  ideas  of  what  such  compositions  ought  to 
be,  or  to  the  plan,  the  outline  of  which  it  has  been  my 
wish  to  fill  up.”  At  all  events,  we  read  of  no  more 
hymns  from  Milman  in  Heber’s  letters. 

Milman  contributed  twelve  hymns  in  all  to  the  first 
edition  of  the  book,  which  Bishop  Heber  was  not  to  live 
to  publish  :  and  in  that  book,  as  put  forth  by  the  Bishop’s 
widow  in  1827,  they  first  appeared  in  print.  The  book 
was  immediately  reprinted  in  New  York,  just  too  late 
for  its  hymns  to  be  used  in  the  new  Episcopalian  hymn 
book  published  that  year.  But  perhaps  it  did  not 
matter,  and  certainly  not  so  far  as  this  particular  hymn 
was  concerned,  since  American  Episcopalians  were  con¬ 
tent  to  wait  until  1892  before  including  it  among  their 
authorized  hymns.  The  hymn  was  included  in  The 
[Baptist]  Psalmist  of  1843  and  The  Sabbath  Hymn  Book 
[Congregational]  of  1858,  but,  in  the  case  of  this,  as  of 
so  many  other  hymns,  the  Boston  Unitarians  were  the 
first  to  see  its  merits,  and  the  only  ones  to  make  prompt 


O  HELP  US,  LORD ;  EACH  HOUR  OF  NEED  237 

use  of  it,  which  they  did  in  1830.  It  is  to  be  remembered 
that  the  Orthodox  churches  at  that  date  were  satisfied  to 
sing  “  Watts,”  or,  if  they  were  to  admit  new  hymns 
(enough  to  make  “  Watts  and  Select  ”),  they  preferred 
such  new  hymns  as  approached  most  closely  to  the  old 

model. 

Some  years  ago  Mr.  Francis  Arthur  Jones  attempted 
to  trace  the  whereabouts  of  the  original  manuscript 
drafts  of  some  of  our  popular  hymns  with  a  view  to  an 
article  upon  the  subject  in  the  Strand  Magazine.  He 
found  that  comparatively  few  such  manuscripts  have 
been  preserved.  In  regard  to  those  of  Milman,  his  son, 
Mr.  Arthur  Milman,  wrote :  “  I  have  never  even  seen  a 


CL  /L  /clMY 


AN  AUTOGRAPH  VERSE 


2  3$  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

“  MS.  of  my  father,  Dean  Milman’s  hymns,  and  I  greatly 
doubt  whether  any  can  have  survived.”  It  happened 
that  Mr.  Jones  had  secured  an  autograph  of  this  hymn 
only  two  days  prior  to  the  receipt  of  Mr.  Milman’s  letter, 
and  from  that  the  facsimile  here  reproduced  was  made. 
Concerning  this  he  remarks :  “  Whether  the  MS.  is  the 
original,  or  merely  the  ‘  fair  ’  copy,  I  am  unable  to  say. 

It  came  into  my  hands  through  a  dealer,  and  I  value  it 
very  highly.” 


The  Author  of  the  Hymn 

Henry  Hart  Milman,  born  February  ioth,  1791,  was 
the  youngest  child  of  Francis  Milman,  physician  to 
George  III.,  and  created  a  baronet  by  that  king.  He 
was  prepared  for  Oxford  at  Eton,  and  after  a  brilliant 
career  took  his  degree  at  Brasenose  College  in  1813. 
Among  the  prizes  he  carried  off  was  that  for  English 
poetry,  an  event  chronicled  in  one  of  the  Ingoldsby 
Legends : — 


“  His  lines  on  Apollo 
Beat  all  the  rest  hollow, 

And  gained  him  the  Newdigate  prize.” 

While  still  at  Oxford  he  wrote  his  first  drama,  “Fazio: 
a  Tiagedy,  published  soon  after  his  graduation.  It  was 
put  upon  the  stage  without  his  knowledge  or  consent, 
and  acted  with  much  success  in  England  and  America. 

Ordained  to  the  ministry  in  1816,  he  became  Vicar  of 
St.  Maty  s  Church,  Reading.  “  He  reads  and  preaches 
enchantmgly,”  the  famous  Miss  Mitford  wrote  soon  after 
his  coming;  but  he  found  in  his  parish  some  prejudice 
against  him  as  the  author  of  a  play.  He  was  full  of 


240 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


industry  and  literary  ambition,  and  followed  his  drama 
with  an  epic  poem  in  twelve  books,  “  Samor,  Lord  of  the 
Bright  City.”  Then  came  the  three  religious  dramas 
which  crowned  his  poetic  career,  the  “  Fall  of  Jerusalem,” 
in  1820;  the  “  Martyr  of  Antioch  ”  and  “  Belshazzar,”  in 
1822.  For  the  copyright  of  each  of  these  he  received 
the  large  sum  of  five  hundred  guineas. 

But  with  the  last  of  the  three  the  enthusiasm  of  critics 
and  applause  of  the  public,  originally  very  great,  had 
waned,  and  his  later  poems  were  not  successful.  All 
alike  are  now  buried  and  forgotten.  It  seems  strange, 
indeed,  that  a  poet  greeted  with  so  much  enthusiasm  by 
his  contemporaries  should  be  remembered  only  by  a  few 
hymns.  His  poetical  works,  gathered  into  three  comely 
volumes  in  1839,  and  long  out  of  print,  contain  much 
that  is  striking  and  beautiful ;  and  not  the  least  pleasing 
feature  is  their  dedication  “  To  her  who  has  made  the 
poetry  of  life  reality,  by  her  affectionate  husband.” 

Milman  was  to  win  more  permanent  fame  in  another 
branch  of  literature.  While  still  at  Reading  he  published 
his  History  of  the  Jews ,  in  which  he  attempted,  for  the 
first  time  in  England,  to  read  the  sacred  annals  in  the 
light  of  the  principles  of  historical  criticism.  This  effort 
brought  down  upon  him  a  storm  of  indignation  and 
abuse,  for  which,  however,  he  was  not  unprepared,  and 
which  he  weathered  in  silence.  His  later  works,  The 
History  of  Christianity  and  The  History  of  Latin  Chris¬ 
tianity ,  placed  him  at  once  among  the  great  historical 
writers  of  the  language ;  and  in  that  high  place  he  still 
remains.  Promotion  in  the  Church  also  came  to  him. 
In  1835  he  was  appointed  rector  of  St.  Margaret’s,  the 
church  that  stands  in  the  shadow  of  Westminster  Abbey ; 


O  HELP  US,  LORD ;  EACH  HOUR  OF  NEED  24 1 


and  in  1849  he  became  Dean  of  St.  Paul’s,  the  cathedral 
church  of  London. 

Dean  Milman’s  London  life  was  one  of  incessant  toil, 
and  had  its  sorrows  also,  three  of  his  children  lying  in 
one  grave  in  the  north  aisle  of  the  Abbey.  He  became 
a  great  figure  in  London,  sought  after  for  his  social 
charm,  admired  for  his  learning  and  genius,  and  reverenced 
for  his  lofty  and  peculiarly  straightforward  Christian 
character.  He  was  a  liberal  in  theology,  and  stood 
resolutely  apart  from  the  High  Church  movement.  He 
survived  in  the  full  vigor  of  his  mental  powers  until 
September  24th,  1868,  and  was  buried  in  the  crypt  of  his 
vast  cathedral. 

In  1900  appeared  a  biography  of  Dean  Milman,  by 
the  son  who  has  already  been  referred  to.  It  had  been 
delayed,  strangely  enough,  until  the  generation  of  those 
who  were  his  personal  friends  had  passed  away  and  the 
lustre  of  his  poetic  reputation  had  been  dimmed  by  the 
lapse  of  time. 


Some  Points  for  discussion 

(1)  In  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer  each  Sunday  has 
a  passage  of  the  gospels  appropriated  to  it,  to  be  used  as 
the  Gospel  for  the  day.  Bishop  Heber’s  hymn  book  was 
to  have  a  hymn  for  each  Sunday  based  on  its  special 
Gospel.  What  is  the  particular  passage  on  which  this 
hymn  is  based,  and  which  it  illustrates  ? 

(2)  When  Dean  Milman  came  to  make  a  hymn  book 
of  his  own,  he  omitted  the  fourth  and  fifth  verses  of  this 
hymn ;  but,  in  reprinting  it  in  his  Poetical  Works  of  1839, 
he  included  all  six  verses,  with  no  change  from  his  earliest 
text,  except  that  in  the  first  line  of  the  last  verse  he  sub- 

16 


2ZJ.2  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

stituted  “Saviour”  for  “Jesus.”  In  the  omission  of  the 
two  verses  he  has  been  followed  by  most  later  editors. 
As  to  the  beauty  of  those  omitted  verses  there  can  hardly 
be  any  question.  But  is  there  any  such  lack  of  clearness 
in  them  that  the  poem  is  better  as  a  hymn  without 
them  ? 

(3)  The  three  hymns  of  Milman  in  The  Hymnal  (“  Ride 
on,  Ride  on  in  Majesty,”  “  When  our  Heads  are  Bowed 
with  Woe,”  and  this)  are  probably  the  best  out  of  his 
twelve  in  Bishop  Heber’s  book.  And,  if  placed  side  by 
side,  it  will  be  seen  that  each  is  in  a  different  style.  One 
is  after  the  manner  of  a  metrical  litany,  one  so  dramatic 
that  it  might  serve  as  a  chorus  for  one  of  his  sacred 
dramas,  and  one  “  a  piece  of  pure,  deep  devotion  ”  in  the 
best  manner  of  unpretentious  hymn  writing. 


XXIII 


SHEPHERD  OF  TENDER  YOUTH 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

i  Shepherd  of  tender  youth, 
Guiding  in  love  and  truth 
Through  devious  ways  : 
Christ,  our  triumphant  King, 
We  come  Thy  Name  to  sing; 
Hither  our  children  bring, 

To  shout  Thy  praise. 


2  Thou  art  our  Holy  Lord, 

The  all-subduing  Word, 
Healer  of  strife  : 

Thou  didst  Thyself  abase, 
That  from  sin’s  deep  disgrace 
Thou  mightest  save  our  race, 
And  give  us  life. 


3  Thou  art  the  Great  High  Priest, 
Thou  hast  prepared  the  feast 
Of  heavenly  love  : 

While  in  our  mortal  pain, 

None  calls  on  Thee  in  vain  : 
Help  Thou  dost  not  disdain, 
Help  from  above. 


243 


244 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  Ever  be  Thou  our  Guide, 

Our  Shepherd  and  our  Pride, 

Our  Staff  and  Song  : 

Jesus,  Thou  Christ  of  God, 

By  Thy  perennial  word, 

Lead  us  where  Thou  hast  trod; 

Make  our  faith  strong. 

5  So  now  and  till  we  die, 

Sound  we  Thy  praises  high, 

And  joyful  sing: 

Infants,  and  the  glad  throng 
Who  to  Thy  Church  belong, 

Unite  to  swell  the  song 
To  Christ  our  King. 

Clement  of  Alexandria,  who  died  about  A.  D.  220 
Translated  by  Rev.  Henry  Martyn  Dexter,  1846 


The  Story  of  the  hymn 

This  hymn  is  the  translation  of  a  Greek  poem,  and 
this  relation  to  an  antique  world  gives  it  a  special  inter¬ 
est  of  its  own.  It  forms  a  connecting  link  between  the 
second  century  and  the  twentieth,  showing  that,  while 
many  things  have  been  changed,  the  Christian  heart 
then  as  now  feels  the  same  impulse  to  praise  Christ,  and 
can  express  that  praise  in  like  words.  The  Greek  poem 
is  often  spoken  of  as  the  oldest  Christian  hymn,  but 
that  is  saying  too  much.  It  is  rather  the  oldest  surviv¬ 
ing  Christian  poem  (after  the  Song  of  Mary  and  the 
other  New  Testament  hymns)  which  can  be  traced  to  a 
particular  author.  And  that  is  distinction  enough. 

Among  the  great  figures  of  the  Church  at  the  end  of 
the  second  century  was  Clement  of  Alexandria.  Of 
Clement  himself,  apart  from  his  reputation  and  writings, 
we  know  little.  He  was  a  Greek,  but  when  or  where 


SHEPHERD  OF  TENDER  YOUTH 


245 


born  is  uncertain.  He  seems  to  have  been  of  good 
birth  and  social  position,  and  certainly  was  highly  edu¬ 
cated.  He  had  been  a  heathen  philosopher  and  when 
he  became  a  Christian  was  a  philosopher  still,  travel¬ 
ing  about  seeking  for  light  from  various  teachers.  He 
mentions  six,  under  whom  he  studied  “the  true  tradition 
of  the  blessed  doctrine  of  the  holy  apostles.”  Alex¬ 
andria  was  then  the  great  centre  of  Christian  scholar¬ 
ship.  It  was  there  that  Clement  found  in  the  Word  of 
God  the  solution  •  of  the  riddles  of  his  soul.  And  there 
his  wanderings  ended  in  rest  in  a  living  Christ.  When 
his  teacher,  Pantaenus,  head  of  the  Catechetical  School 
there,  left  it  to  go  forth  as  a  missionary,  Clement  be¬ 
came  the  head  of  the  school,  and  so  remained  until 
driven  away  by  persecution  in  A.  d.  202.  Whither  he 
went  and  how  he  spent  his  closing  years  we  do  not 
know.  We  hear  of  him  at  Jerusalem  and  once  again 
at  Antioch,  and  he  is  believed  to  have  died  a  little  be¬ 
fore  A.  D.  2  20. 

Clement  was  a  reformer,  and  wiote  seveial  books  ex¬ 
posing  the  dreadful  moral  corruption  of  paganism  and 
tutoring  new  converts  in  the  life  becoming  the  gospel  of 
Christ.  One  of  his  books  was  called  The  Instructor  (or 
Tutor),  and  is  a  treatise  on  Christian  morals  and  manners. 
It  sets  forth  Christ  the  Son  of  God  as  the  true  Instiuctoi 
of  men,  and  expounds  His  teachings  with  eloquence  and 
the  warmth  of  a  real  affection  for  Plim.  At  the  end  of 
the  book  is  appended  the  “  Hymn  to  Christ  the  Saviour.” 
It  is  a  doxology,  a  burst  of  praise,  an  expression  of 
thankfulness  “  to  the  Instructor  who  has  not  only  en¬ 
lightened  us  but  called  us  into  His  Church  and  united  us 

to  Himself.” 


246 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Clement  s  poem  has  always  been  an  object  of  interest 
to  scholars  as  a  relic  of  early  Christianity,  and  has  been 
fi  equently  translated.  From  a  poetic  standpoint  it  par¬ 
takes  too  much  of  the  nature  of  an  inventory  of  figures 
applied  to  Christ  in  the  Scriptures,  and  too  little  of  the 
spontaneity  of  a  lyric  of  praise.  There  is  at  the  same 
time  a  charm  in  its  cumulative  adorations  and  its  loyalty 
to  Christ.  But  it  never  at  any  period  found  a  place  in 

the  hymn  books  of  the  Church.  For  that  honor  it  waited 
sixteen  centuries. 

In  1 846  an  American  Congregational  clergyman,  the 
Rev.  Henry  Martyn  Dexter,  was  preparing  for  his  church 
at  Manchester,  New  Hampshire,  a  sermon  on  “Some 
prominent  characteristics  of  the  early  Christians,”  from 
the  text,  “  Remember  the  days  of  old.”— Deut.  xxxii.  7. 
It  occurred  to  him  to  make  a  hymn  out  of  the  old  poem 
and  to  have  it  sung  at  the  service.  He  says:  “I  first 
translated  it  literally  into  prose,  and  then  transfused  as 
much  of  its  language  and  spirit  as  I  could  into  the  hymn.” 
Dr.  Dexters  hymn  was  first  printed  in  The  Cgngregation- 
cihst  for  December  21st,  1849.  In  185 3  Drs.  Hedge  and 
Huntington  put  it  into  their  Hymns  for  the  Church  of 
Christ  simply  because,  in  their  judgment,  it  was  a  good 
hymn,  as  they  apparently  knew  nothing  of  its  history  or 
authorship.  In  1866  it  was  included  in  the  Hymnal  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church ,  and  is  now  widely  used  in  this 
country  and  to  some  extent  in  England.  Dr.  Dexter’s 
version  has  certainly  won  its  way  without  any  pushing 
on  his  part.  As  lately  as  1869  Dr.  Schafif  (with  all  his 
wide  acquaintance  with  religious  verse)  was  obliged  to 
include  it  in  his  delightful  Christ  in  Song  as  “a  trans¬ 
fusion  by  an  unknown  author.” 


SHEPHERD  OF  TENDER  YOUTH 


247 


(W.  y\J2J2lAh  J?Lc/_Q_^t 

^lQ^lSu 2JMp  OUjlS^  (HXN^^tZS^ 

Cxjju£-^  'isAA-g; 

%3u%  CfCuv-'  vl%ct 


^oJ^JojULj  <uU^C^uUf  H 

£k£j2u$-^  U4  U/WeA^wAc  uwt'fej 

^\j2i4&^  £hjk  <^cfe O  SI Mh(^> 

-^o3cl^2 !Q^Miama2, 

A  VERSE  IN  THE  AUTOGRAPH  OF  THE  TRANSLATOR 


THE  TRANSLATOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Henry  Martyn  Dexter,  a  son  of  the  Rev.  Elijah 
Dexter,  was  born  at  Plympton,  Massachusetts,  August 
13th,  1821.  He  was  graduated  from  Yale  College  in 
1840  and  from  Andover  Theological  Seminary  in  1844. 
That  same  year  he  was  ordained,  and  became  pastor  of 


248 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


a  Congregational  Church  at  Manchester,  New  Hamp¬ 
shire.  hive  years  later  he  became  pastor  of  a  church  in 
oston.  While  there  he  also  became  the  editor  of  The 
Congregcitionalist  and  of  The  Congregational  Quarterly 
In  1 867  he  resigned  his  pastorate  to  be  the  editor  of  The 
C  ongreg ationalist  and  Recorder. 

Dr.  Dexter’s  natural  inclinations  made  his  career  that 
of  a  man  of  letters  and  a  scholar.  He  was  especially 
interested  in  historical  studies.  Born  within  ten  miles 
o  Plymouth  Rock,  and  often  visiting  the  old  town  so 
u  1  of  Pilgrim  memories,  and  with  the  blood  both  of 
1  gnm  and  Puritan  blended  in  his  own  veins,  he  early 
acquired  a  peculiar  interest  in  the  first  settlers  of  New 
England.  He  came  to  believe  in  their  system  of  Con¬ 
gregationalism  as  the  best  and  most  Scriptural  form  of 
church  government.  What  Dr.  Dexter  believed  he  be¬ 
lieved  with  all  his  heart,  and  he  spent  much  time  and 
money  in  tracing  the  beginnings  of  the  Pilgrim  Church 
m  England  and  Holland,  and  especially  in  searching  for 
the  rare  books  and  tracts  that  illustrate  the  early  history 
of  Congregationalism.  He  published  many  books  and 
ai tides  on  these  and  kindred  subjects,  upon  which  he 
now  lecognized  as  a  high  authority.  His  principal 
w  oik  was  published  in  1880  as  The  Congregationalism 
of  the  Last  Three  Hundred  Years ,  as  Seen  in  its  Litera¬ 
ture.  While  some  of  the  conclusions  of  this  book  have 
been  questioned,  no  one  has  failed  to  admire  the  learn¬ 
ing  and  patient  research  that  have  gone  into  it.  Dr. 
Dexter’s  published  works  extend  over  more  than  forty 
yeais.  His  interests  and  studies  were  by  no  means  con¬ 
fined  to  Congregationalism,  and  his  works  deal  with 
many  problems  in  national,  religious,  and  social  life 


SHEPHERD  OF  TENDER  YOUTH 


249 


Dr.  Dexter’s  hymn  entitles  him  to  a  niche  among 
American  hymn  writers,  but  he  seems  to  have  published 
no  other  verse.  His  son,  the  Rev.  Morton  Dexter, 
writes :  “  As  a  young  man  he  used  to  write  verse  some¬ 
times,  and  in  middle  life  composed  a  number  of  hymns 


REV.  HENRY  M.  DEXTER 


for  special  occasions.  But  he  never  regarded  himself  as 
a  poet  and  never  gave  much  attention  to  versifying. 
Most  of  his  earlier  poetry  was  in  the  ballad  form  and 
amusing  in  character.” 

Dr.  Dexter  died  of  heart  failure  on  November  13th, 
1890,  passing  away  in  his  sleep.  To  look  at  the  like¬ 
ness  of  his  pleasant  face  and  to  read  his  books,  so  full 
of  learning  and  vitality,  is  to  feel  something  of  the  irre¬ 
trievableness  of  death.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  no  bi¬ 
ography  of  him  has  been  published.  He  holds  a  secure 
place  among  the  investigators  into  the  origins  of  Ameri- 


250  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

can  church  history,  but  it  is  not  impossible  that  his 
hymn  may  prove  to  be  his  most  enduring  memorial. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(i)  In  our  hymn  books  many  hymns  are  marked 
“  Tr.,”  which  means  that  they  are  translations,  whether 
from  the  Greek  or  Latin  or  some  other  language.  But 
while,  for  convenience,  all  alike  are  called  translations,  it 
should  be  understood  that  such  hymns  differ  very  widely 
in  the  degree  in  which  the  English  version  corresponds 
to  the  original  text.  As  a  rule,  translations  from  the 
Latin  can  and  do  follow  the  original  more  closely  than 
those  from  the  Greek.  It  must  be  said  frankly  that  few 
translations  have  less  of  the  original  in  them  than  this. 
Dr.  Dexter  attempted  little  more  than  to  reproduce  the 
spirit  of  the  original  with  occasional  use  of  its  language. 
This  will  appear  in  comparing  the  following  literal  trans¬ 
lation  with  Dr.  Dexter’s  hymn  : — 


Bridle  of  untamed  colts, 

Shepherd,  Husbandman, 

Wing  of  unwandering  birds, 

Helm,  Bridle, 

Sure  Helm  of  babes, 

Heavenly  Wing 

Shepherd  of  royal  lambs  ! 

Of  the  all-white  flock, 

Assemble  thy  simple  children 

Fisher  of  men 

To  praise  holily, 

Who  are  saved, 

To  hymn  guilelessly 

Catching  the  chaste  fishes 

With  innocent  mouths, 

With  sweet  life 

Christ  the  Guide  of  children. 

From  the  hateful  wave 

Of  a  sea  of  vices, — 

O  King  of  Saints, 

Lead,  0  Shepherd 

All-subduing  Word 

Of  reasoning  sheep ; 

Of  the  most-high  Father, 

Lead  harmless  children, 

Prince  of  wisdom, 

O  holy  King, 

Support  of  sorrows, 

O  footsteps  of  Christ, 

That  rejoicest  in  the  ages, 

O  heavenly  Way, 

Jesus,  Saviour 

Perennial  Word, 

Of  the  human  race, 

Endless  Age, 

SHEPHERD  OF  TENDER  YOUTH 


251 


“  Perpetual  Light, 

Fountain  of  mercy, 

Worker  of  virtue : 

Noble  [is  the]  sustenance  of  those 
Who  praise  God, 

O  Christ  Jesus, 

Heavenly  milk 
Of  the  sweet  breasts 
Of  the  graces  of  the  Bride, 
Pressed  out  of  Thy  wisdom. 

“  Babes,  nourished 
With  tender  lips> 

Filled  with  the  dewy  spirit 
Of  the  spiritual  breast, 


Let  us  sing  together 
Artless  praises, 

True  hymns 
To  Christ  the  King, 
Sacred  rewards 
For  the  doctrine  of  life ; 
Let  us  sing  together, 
Sing  in  simplicity 
The  mighty  Child. 

O  choir  of  peace, 

The  Christ-begotten, 

O  chaste  people, 

Let  us  praise  together 
The  God  of  peace.” 


Any  one  who  values  the  historical  association  of  the 
hymn  feels  a  certain  dissatisfaction  with  so  loose  a  ren¬ 
dering  of  the  original  as  Dr.  Dexter’s.  That  the  poem 
can  be  reproduced  much  more  closely  appears  from  a 
version  by  a  Scotch  Presbyterian,  Dr.  Hamilton  M.  Mac- 
gill,  of  which  the  opening  lines  are  as  follows  : 


“  Thyself,  Lord,  be  the  bridle  ! 
These  wayward  wills  to  stay : 
Be  thine  the  wing  unwandering ! 
To  speed  their  upward  way  ; 


“The  helm  for  youth  embarking 
On  the  all-treacherous  sea  ! 
Shepherd  of  lambs  !  Thou  only, 
Their  King  and  Leader  be  ! 


“  O  bring  your  tender  young  ones, 
To  chant  their  hymns  of  praise, 
And  holy  hallelujahs, 

With  hallowed  lips  to  raise. 


“  Let  them  with  songs  adoring, 

Their  artless  homage  bring 
To  Christ  the  Lord,  and  crown  Him 
The  children’s  Guide  and  King.” 


252 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Dr.  Macgill’s  verse  is  just  as  good  as  Dr.  Dexter’s  and 
as  a  translation  far  better.  Yet,  after  all,  it  is  a  question 
if  Dr.  Dexter’s  version  does  not  better  represent  the 
original  for  the  purpose  of  singing.  The  spirit  of  the 
Greek  poem  appeals  to  us,  but  when  it  comes  to  address¬ 
ing  Christ  as  the  bridle  and  the  helm  we  are  not  quite  so 
sure. 

(2)  The  autograph  verse  here  reproduced  (it  was 
written  in  1883)  shows  that  Dr.  Dexter  had  recast  the 
form  of  the  fourth  verse.  Is  the  earlier  or  the  later 
version  preferable  ?  Careless  as  he  was  of  the  fate  of  the 
hymn,  it  is  difficult  to  say  which  one  of  the  somewhat 
differing  texts  represents  his  preference.  That  here 
printed  is  one  that  apparently  had  his  approval  as  late  as 
1883. 


XXIV 


THINE  FOR  EVER!  GOD  OF  LOVE 


The  Text  of  the  Hymn 

1  Thine  for  ever  !  God  of  love, 

Hear  us  from  Thy  throne  above  ; 

Thine  for  ever  may  we  be 

Here  and  in  eternity. 

2  Thine  for  ever !  Lord  of  life, 

Shield  us  through  our  earthly  strife  ; 

Thou,  the  Life,  the  Truth,  the  Way, 

Guide  us  to  the  realms  of  day. 

3  Thine  for  ever  !  O  how  blest 
They  who  find  in  Thee  their  rest  ! 

Saviour,  Guardian,  heavenly  Friend, 

O  defend  us  to  the  end. 

4  Thine  for  ever !  Saviour,  keep 
These  Thy  frail  and  trembling  sheep; 

Safe  alone  beneath  Thy  care, 

Let  us  all  Thy  goodness  share. 

5  Thine  for  ever  !  Thou  our  Guide, 

All  our  wants  by  Thee  supplied, 

All  our  sins  by  Thee  forgiven, 

Lead  us,  Lord,  from  earth  to  heaven. 

Mary  Fawler  (Hooper)  Maude,  1847 

Note. — Five  verses  of  the  original  seven.  Some  features  of  the  text  are 
referred  to  under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion.” 


253 


254 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  Story  of  the  hymn 

A  sensational  or  sentimental  hymn  may  catch  the  ear 
of  the  public  and  at  once  gain  a  short-lived  popularity. 
But  a  hymn  of  solid  merit  makes  its  way  more  slowly. 
It  is  not  often  that  the  writer  of  such  a  hymn  lives  to 
see  it  take  its  place  in  the  permanent  hymnody  of  the 
Church.  Such,  however,  is  the  happy  experience  of 
Mrs.  Maude,  who  wrote  “Thine  for  Ever!  God  of 
Love.”  And  it  is  certainly  an  additional  happy  circum¬ 
stance  that  we  now  have  the  story  of  the  hymn  in  her 
own  words.  Mrs.  Maude  has  lately  written  it  for  the 
Rev.  John  Brownlie,  as  follows  : — 

“In  1847  my  husband  was  minister  of  the  Parish 
Church  of  St.  Thomas,  Newport,  Isle  of  Wight.  We 
had  very  large  Sunday-schools,  in  which  I  taught  the 
first  class  of  elder  girls,  then  preparing  for  their  con¬ 
firmation  by  the  Bishop  of  Winchester.  Health  obliged 
me  to  go  for  some  weeks  to  the  seaside,  and  while  there 
I  wrote  twelve  letters  to  my  class,  which  were  afterward 
printed  by  the  Church  of  England  Sunday-School  In¬ 
stitute.  In  one  of  the  letters  I  wrote  off,  almost  im¬ 
promptu,  the  hymn  Thine  for  ever?' 

It  should  be  explained,  perhaps,  that  in  the  confirma¬ 
tion  service  in  the  Church  of  England  the  prayer  spoken 
by  the  bishop  in  the  act  of  laying  on  his  hands  begins, 
“  Defend,  O  Lord,  this  thy  Child  with  thy  heavenly 
grace,  that  he  may  continue  thine  for  ever.”  These 
words  furnished  the  theme  for  the  hymn.  In  the  hymn 
they  are  taken  up  by  catechumens  and  congregation, 
and  made  the  words  of  their  own  prayer. 

Mrs.  Maude  goes  on  to  say :  “  The  hymn  must  have 


THINE  FOR  EVER !  GOD  OF  LOVE 


255 


“  been  in  some  way  seen  by  the  committee  of  the  Chris¬ 
tian  Knowledge  Society,  for  early  in  the  fifties  I  opened 
their  newly-published  hymnal,  much  to  my  surprise, 
upon  my  own  hymn.  After  that,  application  for  its  use 


came  in  from  all  quarters.  Little  did  I  imagine  that  it 
would  be  chosen  by  our  beloved  Queen  to  be  sung  at 
the  confirmation  of  a  Royal  Princess. 

“  It  was  our  custom  in  Chirk  Vicarage  to  sing  a 
hymn,  chosen  in  turn,  at  our  evening  family  prayer  on 
the  Lord’s  Day.  On  Sunday,  February  8th,  1887,  it  was 
my  husband’s  turn  to  choose,  and  he  gave  out  Thine 
for  ever ,  looking  round  at  me.  On  the  11th  he  was 
singing  with  saints  in  Paradise.  .  .  . 


256 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  Now,  in  my  eightieth  year,  whenever  I  meet  my 
hymn,  there  seems  written  across  it,  to  my  mental  vision, 

non  nobis  D online 

Mrs.  Maude’s  hymn  is  so  admirably  suited  to  a  con¬ 
firmation  service  that  its  early  adoption  in  the  Church  of 
England  can  readily  be  understood.  In  this  country 
the  hymn  does  not  seem  to  have  been  used  in  the  Epis¬ 
copal  Church  until  1872.  By  that  time  it  was  already 
getting  to  be  familiar  in  such  Presbyterian  and  Congre¬ 
gational  churches  as  were  using  Dr.  Robinson’s  Songs  for 
the  Sanctuary ,  published  in  1865. 

In  accounting  for  the  wide  use  into  which  this  hymn 
has  come,  one  finds  a  reminder  of  the  actual  distinction 
between  a  collection  of  lyrical  or  even  devotional  poetry 
on  the  one  hand  and  a  hymn  book  on  the  other.  If  he 
were  considering  this  hymn  as  a  candidate  for  inclusion 
in  a  book  of  lyrics  he  would  feel  that  it  was  lyrical  in  the 
sense  of  being  eminently  singable,  but  he  would  look  in 
vain  through  its  verses  for  any  special  structural  beauty, 
for  a  thought  or  even  a  turn  of  expression  that  had 
anything  of  the  charm  of  the  unexpected.  Nothing  in 
it  is  far  removed  from  the  commonplace  in  a  poetic 
sense.  He  might  feel  toward  it  in  much  the  same  way, 
considered  for  a  place  even  in  a  book  of  devotional 
poetry.  He  would  recognize  a  real  tenderness  of  feel¬ 
ing  and  a  perfect  refinement  of  expression.  Why,  even 
then,  should  it  gain  favor  as  against  a  vast  body  of 
verse  as  true  in  religious  feeling  and  equally  poetic,  to 
say  the  least  ?  But  who,  on  the  other  hand,  has  ever 
heard  Mrs.  Maude’s  hymn  sung  heartily  in  connection 
with  the  act  of  admitting  catechumens  to  the  Table  of 
their  Lord  without  feeling  something  of  the  satisfaction 


THINE  FOR  EVER !  GOD  OF  LOVE  257 

that  comes  with  the  right  word,  to  the  occasion  true 
because  exactly  expressive  of  the  feeling  which  the 
occasion  evokes  ?  Mrs.  Maude’s  verses,  it  would  seem, 
find  their  proper  place  not  in  a  book  of  poems,  but  in  a 
service  book.  They  are  poetry  in  the  sense  of  being 
liturgical  verse,  whose  art  consists  in  entering  into  the 
feelings  of  those  participating  in  a  certain  service,  and 
giving  to  them  expression  in  perfect  truth  and  in  perfect 
taste.  To  bring  out  the  poetry  in  them  they  must  be 
sung,  and  sung  in  connection  with  the  service  to  which 
they  belong,  and  sung  by  those  whose  hearts  respond 
to  what  the  service  means  and  stands  for.  There  is 
abundant  room  for  lyrics  of  high  art  in  the  hymn  book, 
but  there  is  also  an  inevitable  demand  for  proper  liturgical 
poetry. 

In  estimating  the  readiness  of  welcome  which  Mrs. 
Maude’s  hymn  has  found,  one  has  also  to  remember 
that  it  did  not  have  to  make  its  way  through  a  very 
formidable  body  of  competitors.  Even  now  it  stands 
somewhat  isolated  on  a  bare  spot  of  the  domain  of  our 
hymnody.  We  have  Bishop  Wordsworth’s  conscien¬ 
tious  and  careful  “  Arm  These  Thy  Soldiers,  Mighty 
Lord”  ( The  Hymnal ,  No.  315).  But  the  hymn  itself 
belongs  to  the  Heavy  Artillery,  and  rarely  gets  into 
active  service.  We  have  also  President  Davies’s  “  Lord, 
I  am  Thine,  Entirely  Thine”  ( The  Hymnal,  No.  320), 
but  many  who  have  heard  it  sung  by  a  great  congrega¬ 
tion  must  have  felt  that  it  should  have  remained  rather 
as  a  secret  between  an  individual  soul  and  its  Master. 
There  are  no  other  hymns  for  this  occasion  with  the 
liturgical  excellence  of  Mrs.  Maude’s.  And  that  fact 
greatly  strengthens  its  title  to  the  place  it  now  holds. 


17 


258 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  author  of  the  Hymn 

Mary  Fawler  Hooper  was  born  in  1819,  and  is  the 
daughter  of  George  H.  Hooper,  of  Stanmore,  Middlesex. 
In  1841  she  was  married  to  the  Rev.  Joseph  Maude,  who 
became  Vicar  of  Chirk,  in  North  Wales,  and  an  Honorary 
Canon  of  St.  Asaph’s  Cathedral,  and  whose  death,  in 
1887,  has  been  referred  to  already.  In  1848  her  Twelve 
Letter's  on  Confirmation  were  published,  and  in  1852  she 
printed  privately  her  Memorials  of  Past  Years.  She  has 
written  other  hymns,  mostly  for  use  in  her  husband’s 
parish,  but  none  of  these  has  come  into  general  use. 

Mrs.  Maude’s  life  has  been  in  no  sense  that  of  a 
woman  of  letters,  or  one  lived  in  the  public  eye.  It  has 
been  that  of  the  faithful  wife  of  a  village  pastor,  the 
sharer  of  his  labors  and  his  hopes.  Of  such  a  life,  how¬ 
ever  successful,  the  rewards  are  not  with  men.  Her 
hymn  represents  her  one  point  of  contact  with  the  larger 
public.  And  even  the  hymn  was  written  with  no  more 
ambitious  aim  than  that  of  being  helpful  to  a  class  of 
village  girls.  “  The  praise  of  any  usefulness,”  Mrs.  Maude 
modestly  says  in  a  recent  letter,  “  must  be  all  given  to 
Him  whose  glory  it  is  to  work  by  such  simple  means. 
Mrs.  Maude  is  now  in  the  evening  of  her  life,  but  it 
seems  likely  that  for  long  her  name  will  be  pleasantly 
remembered  in  connection  with  the  hymn  of  her  youngei 
days. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

(1)  “  For  ever”  is  so  long  a  time  that  only  God  Him¬ 
self  could  be  justified  in  covering  it  with  a  pledge  or 
promise.  Is  the  beautiful  ideal  of  our  being  God’s  for 


THINE  FOR  EVER!  GOD  OF  LOVE  259 


ever  set  before  us  by  the  hymn  in  such  a  way  that  we 
can  sing  it  in  sincerity  and  in  truth  ? 

(2)  The  text  of  the  hymn  in  The  Hymnal  (and  here) 
differs  in  one  word,  apparently,  from  the  original.  The 
editor  wras  unable  to  secure  a  copy  of  the  little  book  in 
which  the  hymn  first  appeared,  and  he  had  to  determine 
the  text  from  such  evidence  as  he  could  obtain.  He  has 
now  in  his  possession  an  autograph  of  the  hymn  in  which 
verse  four  begins  : — 

“  Thine  for  ever  !  Shepherd,  keep 
Us,  Thy  frail  and  trembling  sheep”  ; 

and  also  a  letter  in  which  Mrs.  Maude  states  that  she 
originally  wrote  “  Shepherd,”  and  does  not  know  who 


260 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


changed  it  to  “  Saviour.”  “  Shepherd  ”  seems,  therefore, 
to  be  the  correct  word.  Is  it  not  also  the  better  word, 
and  why  ? 

The  second  of  the  two  lines  just  quoted  from  the 
autograph  of  the  hymn  also  differs  from  the  text  printed 
in  The  Hymnal.  In  spite  of  that  fact  the  present  writer 
believed  the  Hymnal  text  to  be  correct ;  and  when  this 
Study  was  originally  printed  he  remarked  at  this  point : 
“  In  regard  to  the  second  line  there  is  reason  to  think 
that  Mrs.  Maude  has  on  other  occasions  given  ‘  These  ’ 
and  not  ‘  Us  ’  as  the  correct  wording.  Certainly  the 
‘  Us  ’  is  awkward  in  beginning  the  line.”  And  now, 
while  the  proofs  of  this  second  printing  of  the  Study  are 
being  corrected,  there  arrives  opportunely  from  England 
a  copy  of  Mr.  F.  A.  Jones’s  Famous  Hymns  and  Their 
Authors.  Mr.  Jones,  who  has  been  already  referred  to 
as  a  seeker  for  the  original  manuscripts  of  well-known 
hymns,  has  had  correspondence  with  Mrs.  Maude  con¬ 
cerning  this  hymn.  She  calls  his  attention,  in  a  letter 
which  he  quotes,  to  alterations  made  in  the  fourth  verse 
of  her  hymn  “  without  any  reference  to  ”  her.  One  of 
the  unauthorized  changes  she  objects  to  is  that  of 
“  These  ”  into  “  Us.”  She  says  :  “  ‘  Us  ’  is  a  most  un¬ 
musical  word  to  begin  a  line  with,  and,  moreover,  the 
thought  of  the  verse  is  lost,  for  the  first  two  lines  are  a 
prayer  for  the  catechumens  from  the  congregation : — 

‘  Thine  for  ever!  Shepherd,  keep 
These  Thy  frail  and  trembling  sheep  ’ ; 

then  the  supplication  reverts  and  embraces  all  present : — 

‘Safe  alone  beneath  Thy  care, 

Let  us  all  Thy  goodness  share.’  ” 


THINE  FOR  EVER!  GOD  OF  LOVE  26 1 

Mrs.  Maude’s  position  is  doubtless  correct.  She  is  con¬ 
fronted,  nevertheless,  by  her  autograph  copy  of  the 
hymn  containing  the  very  word  against  which  she  pro¬ 
tests  as  objectionable  and  unauthorized.  This  particular 
instance  of  confusion  is  referred  to  here  not  merely  for 
its  interest  as  bearing  upon  the  text  of  a  familiar  hymn, 
but  also  as  an  illustration  of  the  great  difficulty  of  attain¬ 
ing  accuracy  in  these  matters.  Ordinarily  in  the  case 
of  a  disputed  text  or  interpretation  an  appeal  to  the 
author  is  regarded  as  bringing  the  matter  before  a  court 
of  last  resort,  whose  decision  is  final.  In  the  case  of 
hymns,  however,  it  has  repeatedly  been  demonstrated 
that  even  the  statements  of  their  authors  must  be  treated 
as  subject  to  correction. 

(3)  There  were  originally  a  sixth  and  a  seventh  verse 
which  have  not  been  used  in  the  hymnals,  as  follows : — 

“  6  Thine  for  ever!  In  that  day 

When  the  world  shall  pass  away  : 

When  the  trumpet’s  note  shall  sound, 

And  the  nations  under  ground 

“  7  Shall  the  awful  summons  hear, 

Which  proclaims  the  Judgment  near: 

Thine  for  ever  !  ’Neath  Thy  wings 
Hide  and  save  us,  King  of  kings !” 

Do  these  lines  strengthen  or  weaken  the  hymn  ? 

Mrs.  Maude  states  that  the  fifth  verse  originally  ended 
with  the  line  : — 

“  Led  by  Thee  from  earth  to  heaven.” 

The  line  was  changed  to  its  present  form  to  make  a 
proper  conclusion  to  the  hymn  as  abridged,  and  the 
change  has  her  approval. 


262 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


(4)  This  hymn  is  associated  with  the  death  of  the  late 
Dr.  Benson,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  while  visiting 
Mr.  Gladstone  at  Hawarden.  It  was  sung  at  the  close 
of  an  early  service  he  attended  at  the  neighboring  church 
on  October  nth,  1896.  Returning  to  the  church  three 
hours  later  for  the  Morning  Prayer  he  passed  away 
while  kneeling  for  the  Confession.  The  hymn  is  said  to 
have  been  sung  when  his  funeral  left  Hawarden,  and 
again  over  the  grave  at  Canterbury  Cathedral.  It  sug¬ 
gests  once  more  the  difficulty  of  attaining  accuracy  in 
these  matters  that  Mrs.  Maude  states  that  the  hymn 
was  sung  to  the  Archbishop’s  “  favorite  old  Spanish  air, 
Thine  for  ever  ” ;  while  his  son  and  biographer  describes 
it  as  a  beautiful  Welsh  tune  which  the  Archbishop  “  had 
not  heard  before.” 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Brownlie  obtained  a  copy  of  the  tune, 
and  thinks  it  only  requires  to  be  known  to  become  a 
general  favorite,  and  it  is  here  printed : — 


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XXV 


SUNSET  AND  EVENING  STAR 


The  Text  of  the  hymn 

i  Sunset  and  evening  star, 

And  one  clear  call  for  me  ! 

And  may  there  be  no  moaning  of  the  bar 
When  I  put  out  to  sea, 


2  But  such  a  tide  as  moving  seems  asleep, 

Too  full  for  sound  and  foam, 

When  that  which  drew  from  out  the  boundless  deep 

Turns  again  home. 


3  Twilight  and  evening  bell, 

And  after  that  the  dark! 

And  may  there  be  no  sadness  of  farewell 
When  I  embark  ; 


4  For,  though  from  out  our  bourne  of  time  and  place 
The  flood  may  bear  me  far, 

I  hope  to  see  my  Pilot  face  to  face 
When  I  have  crost  the  bar. 

Alfred,  Lord  Tennyson,  1889 

NOTE. _ The  text  is  taken  from  Demeter  and  Other  Poems,  1889. 

263 


264 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


the  Story  of  the  hymn 

Crossing  the  Bar’  was  written  in  my  father’s  eighty- 
first  year,”  writes  the  present  Lord  Tennyson  in  the 
Memoir ;  “  on  a  day  in  October  when  we  came  from 
Aldworth  to  Farringford.  Before  reaching  Farringford 
he  had  the  Moaning  of  the  Bar  in  his  mind,  and  after 
dinner  he  showed  me  this  poem  written  out.  I  said, 
‘  That  is  the  crown  of  your  life’s  work.’  He  answered, 
‘  It  came  in  a  moment.’  He  explained  the  ‘  Pilot  ’  as 
‘  that  Divine  and  Unseen  who  is  always  guiding  us.’  A 
few  days  before  my  father’s  death  he  said  to  me :  ‘  Mind 
you  put  “  Crossing  the  Bar  ”  at  the  end  of  all  editions 
of  my  poems.’  ” 

The  lyric  was  published  in  the  volume  of  1889,  Dime¬ 
ter  and  Other  Poems ,  and  won  instant  acceptance.  The 
student  of  poetry  was  glad  that  the  old  tree  should  bear 
so  perfect  a  flower,  and  the  religious  public  was  touched 
by  the  venerable  poet’s  avowal  of  his  personal  faith. 

The  first  public  use  of  the  poem  was  as  an  anthem  at 
Lord  Tennyson’s  funeral  in  Westminster  Abbey  on  Octo¬ 
ber  1 2th,  1892.  The  daughter  of  the  Dean  of  West¬ 
minster  has  pictured  the  scene  : — 

“  As  the  procession  slowly  passed  up  the  nave  and 
paused  beneath  the  lantern,  where  the  coffin  was  placed 
during  the  first  part  of  the  burial  service,  the  sun  lit  up 
the  dark  scene,  and  touched  the  red  and  blue  Union 
Jack  upon  the  coffin  with  brilliant  light,  filtering  through 
the  painted  panes  of  Chaucer’s  window  on  to  the  cleared 
purple  space  by  the  open  grave,  and  lighting  up  the  beau¬ 
tiful  bust  of  Dryden,  the  massive  head  of  Longfellow, 
the  gray  tomb  of  Chaucer  and  the  innumerable  wreaths 


t}u, 

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^  J  **»  Ow  fr.  /  */S 


FACSIMILE  OF  THE  ORIGINAL  MANUSCRIPT 


266 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


heaped  upon  it.  In  the  intense  and  solemn  silence  which 
followed  the  reading  of  the  lesson  were  heard  the  voices 
of  the  choir  singing  in  subdued  and  tender  tones  Tenny¬ 
son’s  ‘  Crossing  the  Bar  ’ — those  beautiful  words  in  which 
the  poet,  as  it  were,  prophetically  foretold  his  calm  and 
peaceful  deathbed.  In  the  second  line  the  clear,  thrilling 
notes  of  a  boy’s  voice  sounded  like  a  silver  trumpet  call 
amongst  the  arches,  and  it  was  only  at  intervals  that  one 
distinguished  Dr.  Bridge’s  beautiful  organ  accompani¬ 
ment,  which  swelled  gradually  from  a  subdued  murmur 
as  of  the  morning  tide  into  a  triumphant  burst  from  the 
voices,  so  blended  together  were  words  and  music.” 

The  credit  of  introducing  Tennyson’s  lyric  as  a  hymn 
belongs  to  Presbyterians.  A  committee  of  the  Faee 
Church  of  Scotland  engaged  Sir  Joseph  Barnby  to  set  it 
to  music,  and  printed  it  in  their  Home  and  School  Hymnal 
of  1893.  In  this  country  also  the  Presbyterians  were  the 
first  to  include  it  among  their  hymns,  it  appearing  in  The 
Hymnal  of  1895.  It  has  since  appeared  in  The  Church 
Hymnary  of  the  Scottish  Churches  and  in  several  inde¬ 
pendent  collections. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Alfred  Tennyson  was  born  August  6th,  1809,  at 
Somersby,  a  Lincolnshire  village  of  which  his  father  was 
the  rector.  Even  as  a  child  he  made  verses,  and  as  early 
as  1827  he  and  his  brother  Charles  published  a  volume 
of  Poems  by  Two  Brothers.  The  next  year  he  went  to 
Trinity  College,  Cambridge.  “  The  Lover’s  Tale  ”  was 
written  at  that  time,  and  in  the  summer  following  he 
gained  the  chancellor’s  prize  for  a  poem  on  Timbuctoo. 

When  only  twenty-one  Tennyson  published  his  Poems 


SUNSET  AND  EVENING  STAR 


267 


Chiefly  Lyrical.  They  had  a  wonderful  fieshness,  and  in 
them  were  the  very  witchery  of  music  and  all  the  shapes 
and  colors  of  word  painting.  Dreamy  young  people 
were  fascinated  by  these  lyrics.  Older  people,  whose 
tastes  had  been  formed  on  more  conventional  models, 
looked  at  them  more  doubtfully,  and  some,  like  Christo¬ 
pher  North,  laughed  at  them.  They  were  the  ex¬ 
periments  of  a  young  artist,  and  many  of  the  poems 
Tennyson  withdrew  afterward,  with  the  deepening  of  his 
thoughts  and  purposes.  But  the  book  marks  the  worthy 
beginning  of  a  great  poetic  career  of  more  than  sixty 
years,  that  in  its  circumstances  and  its  influence  is  almost 
ideal.  Tennyson  no  doubt  will  always  stand  as  the 
representative  poet  of  Queen  Victoiias  leign. 

To  trace  that  career  and  to  record  his  poetical  achieve¬ 
ments  belongs  to  English  literature  and  not  to  hymnology. 
Except  the  little  children’s  hymn  in  “  The  Promise  of 
May,”  and  possibly  this  poem,  Tennyson  wrote  nothing 
designed  for  a  hymn,  although  some  verses  from  the 
prologue  of  “  In  Memoriam  ”  are  often  included  in  hymn 
books.  It  was  a  favorite  project  with  his  friend  Dr. 
Jowett,  Master  of  Balliol  College,  that  the  poet  should 
“write  a  few  hymns  in  a  high  strain,  to  be  a. treasure,  to 
the  world  and  to  the  Church.”  “  I  want  him  to  think 
of  millions  of  persons  repeating  his  words  with  the  liv¬ 
ing  voice,  during  many  centuries.  Is  this  a  crown  to 
be  despised?”— Jowett  wrote  to  the  poet’s  son.  But 
Tennyson  had  a  feeling  that  hymns  were  expected  to 
be  commonplace,  and  for  that  reason,  perhaps,  he  felt 

little  impulse  to  attempt  them. 

Tennyson  had  a  deeply  religious  nature  and  regarded 

himself  as  intrusted  with  a  divine  message.  He  was  a 


268 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


humble  believer  in  Christ.  “What  the  sun  is  to  that 
flower,  that,”  he  once  said,  “Jesus  Christ  is  to  my  soul.” 
He  spoke  often  of  the  actuality  of  Christ’s  presence  to 
him  in  the  Holy  Communion.  Indeed,  he  lived  and 
wrought  always  as  in  the  divine  presence,  saying  once  to 
his  niece  in  the  most  natural  way :  “  God  is  with  us  now, 
on  this  down,  as  we  two  are  walking  together,  just  as 
truly  as  Christ  was  with  the  two  disciples  on  the  walk  to 
Emmaus.  We  cannot  see  Him,  but  He — the  Father 
and  the  Saviour  and  the  Spirit — is  nearer,  perhaps,  now 
than  then  to  those  who  are  not  afraid  to  believe  the 
words  of  the  apostle  about  the  actual  and  real  presence 
of  God  and  His  Christ  with  all  who  yearn  for  it.” 

As  this  glorious  career  drew  toward  its  close,  his 
queen,  who  had  twice  before  sought  to  crown  it  with 
civic  honors,  offered  the  poet  a  peerage.  While  the 
offer  appealed  to  him  but  little,  he  accepted  it  as  repre¬ 
senting  the  nation’s  tribute  to  literature,  and  in  1883 
became  Baron  Tennyson  of  Aldworth  in  Sussex  and  of 
Freshwater  in  the  Isle  of  Wight.  On  October  6th,  1892, 
God  gave  him,  after  a  brief  sickness,  just  such  a  quiet 
death  as  he  had  craved  in  this  poem,  his  hand  clasp¬ 
ing  a  volume  of  Shakespeare,  which  he  had  asked  for 
just  before  the  end. 

Some  points  for  Discussion 

(1)  It  seems  strange  that  the  personality  of  the  “  Pilot  ” 
should  have  been  a  matter  of  discussion.  But  a  per¬ 
verse  effort  was  made  by  certain  critics  to  deny  that  the 
poem  was  really  an  avowal  of  Christian  faith.  As  to 
this  the  present  Lord  Tennyson  writes  :  “  My  father  was 
much  pained  to  learn  that  any  one  could  misinterpret 


SUNSET  AND  EVENING  STAR  269 

“  the  ‘  Pilot  ’  in  ‘  Crossing  the  Bar,’  and  imagine  that  it 
referred  to  Arthur  Hallam  or  to  my  brother  Lionel. 
He  had  thought  there  could  be  only  one  possible  inter¬ 
pretation.  Repeatedly  and  emphatically,  at  his  dictation. 


LORD  TENNYSON 


I  have  had  to  say  this.  Moreover,  I  have  had  to  ex¬ 
plain,  also  at  his  dictation,  that  in  the  line,  ‘  And  after 
that  the  dark,’  the  ‘  dark  ’  merely  means  ‘  The  Valley  of 
the  Shadow  of  Death.’  ” 

(2)  And  one  clear  call  for  me !  What  is  this  call  ? 
The  passage  from  “  Enoch  Arden  ”  will  be  remem¬ 
bered  : — 

“  Then  the  third  night  after  this, 

While  Enoch  slumber’d  motionless  and  pale, 

And  Miriam  watch’d  and  dozed  at  intervals, 


270 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  There  came  so  loud  a  calling  of  the  sea, 

That  all  the  houses  in  the  haven  rang. 

He  woke,  he  rose,  he  spread  his  arms  abroad, 

Crying  with  a  loud  voice,  ‘  A  sail !  a  sail  ! 

I  am  saved  ’ ;  and  so  fell  back  and  spoke  no  more.” 

In  an  edition  of  Tennyson’s  poems  Mr.  W.  Trego  Webb 
gives  the  following  definition  “  on  the  authority,  if  not  in 
the  words,  of  Lord  Tennyson  himself : — 

“  A  calling  of  the  sea.  A  term  used  in  some  parts  of 
England  for  a  ground-swell.  When  this  occurs  on  a 
windless  night,  the  sound  not  only  echoes  through  the 
houses  standing  near  the  beach,  but  is  often  heard  many 
miles  inland.” 

(3)  A  recent  writer  thinks  that  Tennyson  mixed  his 
metaphors  in  the  last  line,  where  “  we  are  abruptly  con¬ 
fronted  with  a  new  contradictory  image  of  facing  the 
pilot  when  we  have  crossed  the  bar,  as  though  he  were 
then  receiving  us  into  his  care,  instead  of  dismissing  us 
from  it.”  Father  Tabb,  the  poet,  answers  this  by  saying 
that  before  a  ship  sails  out  of  port  the  pilot  is  in  charge, 
nor  does  the  law  allow  her  to  cross  the  bar  without 
him  ;  and  that  in  the  poem  it  is  a  question  not  of  hav¬ 
ing  a  pilot,  but  of  seeing  him  face  to  face,  which  in  our 
voyage  we  cannot  hope  to  do  till  we  have  crossed  the 
bar.  Is  there  any  confusion  of  metaphor  here  ? 

(4)  The  meaning  of  another  line  has  also  been  dis¬ 
cussed.  In  the  Memoir  of  Bishop  Walsham  How  the 
following  passage  occurs  in  a  letter  dated  October  24th, 
1 890 : — 

“A  few  months  ago  the  Master  of  Trinity  (Dr.  Butler)  sent 
me  a  Latin  version  of  Tennyson’s  ‘  Crossing  the  Bar.’  I 
ventured  to  criticise  one  word.  In  rendering  the  lines  : — 


SUNSET  AND  EVENING  STAR  2J  I 

‘  When  that  which  drew  from  out  the  boundless  deep 
Turns  again  home,’ 

he  introduced  the  word  ‘  vita.’  I  said  I  thought  it  was  \\ rong, 
as  I  always  understood  those  lines  of  the  tide  and  not  of  the 
life.  He  replied,  referring  me  to  Tennyson’s  ‘  Out  of  the 
deep,  my  child,  out  of  the  deep,’  and  to  various  other  pas¬ 
sages  of  Tennyson,  proving  that  the  thought  of  the  life  being 
drawn  out  of  the  depths  of  infinity  to  return  thithei  again 
was  a  very  familiar  one  to  him.  He  also  showed  me  several 
places  in  Wordsworth  where  the  same  thought  occurs.  This 
entirely  convinced  me  that  I  was  wrong,  and  I  then  observed 
that  in  each  of  the  other  stanzas  the  third  and  fourth  lines 
refer  to  the  thing  typified,  and  the  first  and  second  to  the 
type,  so  that  symmetry  of  arrangement  was  against  me.  Aftei 
some  time  the  Master  wrote  to  me  from  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
where  he  had  seen  Tennyson,  and  told  me  he  had  told  him 
of  our  correspondence,  and  the  poet  had  said  I  was  right  and 
Butler  wrong.  I  still  think  the  author  had  better  adopt 
Butler’s  view  and  make  it  his  own,  the  arguments  foi  it  being 

so  strong.” 

But  does  not  the  imagery  seem  to  require  that  the 
words  refer  to  the  tide  on  which  the  ship  floats  ? 

(5)  Does  it  seem  likely  that  this  lyric  is  to  take  its 
place  among  the  accepted  hymns  of  the  Church?  In 
its  favor  are  its  exquisite  beauty  and  its  appeal  to  every 
Christian  heart.  Against  it  are  its  irregularity  of  metre, 
requiring  more  extended  music  than  an  ordinary  hymn, 
so  that  it  must  in  any  event  be  reserved  for  somewhat 
occasional  use;  and  also  its  lack  of  hymnic  form,  which, 
however,  is  no  more  marked  here  than  in  the  case  of 
“  Lead,  Kindly  Light.”  It  is  significant,  perhaps,  that 
the  omission  of  the  hymn  from  a  recent  hymnal  caused 


272 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


so  much  remark  that  in  revising  the  plates  of  the  book 
the  opportunity  was  taken  to  insert  it.  Yet,  on  the 
other  hand,  a  distinguished  literary  woman,  Mrs.  Oli- 
phant,  appears  to  question  the  propriety  of  using  this 
lyric  as  a  funeral  hymn.  In  a  letter,  published  since  her 
death,  she  wrote :  “  Is  it  true  that  Hallam  Tennyson  has 
wished  it  to  be  set  to  music  and  sung  at  the  funeral  ?  I 
can’t  think  it  very  suitable  for  that.  I  suggested  to  Dr. 
Bridge  those  verses  from  ‘  In  Memoriam  ’ : — 


‘  Peace  ;  come  away  :  the  song  of  woe 
Is,  after  all,  an  earthly  song.’  ” 


GENERAL  INDEX 


[  Titles  of  books,  etc.,  in  Italics .] 


Abends  (Tune),  36 

Abney,  Sir  Thomas  and  Lady, 

134 

Adams,  John  Brydges,  119 
Adams,  Sarah  Flower: — her  hymn, 
“Nearer,  My  God,  to  Thee,”  117- 
126;  sketch  of,  118-122;  portrait 
of,  121 ;  autographs  of,  121,  123 
Adams,  Rev.  Dr.  William,  222 
Adeste  Fideles  (Tune),  47 
African  colonization,  Mr.  Key  and, 
58 

Alexandria,  245 

Allen,  Rev.  Dr.  A.  V.  G.,  his  Life  of 
Phillips  Brooks,  9,  10 
Alterations  of  hymns,  22,  34,  93,  106, 
124,  259 

“America,”  as  the  name  of  a  hymn, 
99,  101 ;  as  the  name  of  a  tune, 
101,  105,  181 

Andover  Seminary,  Samuel  F.  Smith 
at,  99  ;  hymn  book  edited  by  its 
professors,  30,  124 
“Angel  faces,”  meaning  of,  95 
Anglican  school  of  hymn  tunes,  68, 
no 

Annapolis,  56 

Apologia  pro  Vita  Suo,  88,  92 
Arnold,  John,  151 
Arnold,  Matthew,  135 
Art  and  consecration,  217 
Ash,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  194 
Assize  Sermon  (Keble’s),  32,  92 
Association  of  hymns  with  particular 
tunes,  46-48,  153-154 
18 


Astley,  214,  2x8 
Athenceum,  167 
Augsburg,  158,  159 

Baker,  Rev.  Dr.  George  D.,  172 
Ballad  metre,  12 

Baltimore,  Mr.  Key  in,  54,  58  ;  attack 
on,  59 

Baptist  hymnody,  38,  44,  46,  104, 194, 
195 

Baptist  Missionary  Magazine,  102 
Baring-Gould,  Rev.  Sabine  : — his 
hymn,  “Onward,  Christian  Sol¬ 
diers,”  107-116;  sketch  of,  in- 
114;  portrait  of,  113;  autograph 
of,  in 

Barnby,  Sir  Joseph,  266 
Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  30,  123,  173 
Belleville  Avenue  Congregational 
Church,  Newark,  80 
Belshazzar,  240 

Benson,  Archbishop  Edward  White, 
34.  262 

Bethany  (Tune),  124 
Bethlehem,  Phillips  Brooks  at,  2 
Biblical  language  in  hymns,  48-49, 
146,  246  ;  the  Bible  as  a  theme  of 
hymns,  199 

Bickersteth,  Bishop  Edward  H.,  94 
Bird,  Rev.  Frederick  M.,  52,  223, 
224,  225 

Bloomfield,  N.  J.,  the  Duffields  at, 
19,  20,  21 

Blue-Stocking  Revels,  quoted,  121 
I  Boardman  s  Selection,  173 


273 


GENERAL  INDEX 


274 

Book  of  Common  Prayer ,  10,  27,  28, 
152,  206,  241,  254 
Book  of  Hymns,  92,  123,  138,  142 
Book  of  Praise,  34 
Boston,  Phillips  Brooks  in,  7-8  ; 
Lowell  Mason  in,  68,  99  ;  Ray 
Palmer  in,  80;  S.  F.  Smith  in,  98, 
104;  John  S.  Dwight  in,  190 
Bridge,  Dr.  Frederick,  266,  272 
British  Alagazine ,  92 
Brixham,  Lower,  170 
Brook  Farm,  190 
Brooke,  Rev.  John  T.,  56,  58 
Brooks,  Rev.  Dr.  Arthur,  3 
Brooks,  Rev.  Charles  T.,  179-189; 

portrait  of,  187  ;  autograph  of,  182 
Brooks,  Bishop  Phillips  : — his  hymn, 
“  O  Little  Town  of  Bethlehem," 
1-12 ;  sketch  of,  7-10  ;  portrait  of, 
9  ;  autographs  of,  3,  xi 
Broughton,  196-198 
Browning,  Robert,  119 
Brownlie,  Rev.  John,  254,  262 
Buckingham,  Governor,  180 
Butler,  Rev.  Dr.  Henry  M.,  270. 
Byron,  234 

Calling  of  the  sea,  270 
Cambridge  Divinity  School,  Long¬ 
fellow  and  Johnson  at,  138 
Cambridge  Intelligencer ,  118 
Cambridge,  University  of,  Bishop 
Wordsworth  at,  202 
Campbell,  Thomas,  235 
Carlyle,  Thomas,  161,  167 
Carmina  Sacra,  179,  186 
Carols,  Christmas  and  Easter,  9,  153 
Carrington,  General  Henry  B.,  104 
Cawood,  Rev.  John,  214 
Central  Presbyterian  Church  (N.  L.), 
Philadelphia,  20 
“  Ceylon’s  isle,"  72 
Chambers,  Rev.  John,  16 
Channing,  Dr.,  164 
Chauncy,  Dr.  Isaac,  134 
Children’s  hymns,  8-9,  109 


Chirk,  255 
Christ  in  Song,  246 
Christian  Lyre,  54 
Christian  Messenger,  .53 
Christian  Observer,  66-67,  71 
Christian  Review,  104 
Christian,  The,  43 
Christian  Year,  26-29,  87,  206,  235 
Christmas  at  Bethlehem,  2;  at  Que- 
mados,  Cuba,  47;  Christmas  carols, 
9,  153  ;  “  Adeste  Fideles,”  47-48 
Church,  The,  in  hymnody,  1x3 
Church  Hymnal  (Hutchins),  no 
Church  Hymnary  (Scottish),  125,  266 
Church  of  England  hymnody,  46,64, 
71,  73,  129,  152,  234-236 
Church  of  the  Covenant,  Philadel¬ 
phia,  14 

Church  of  the  Disciples,  123 
Church  of  the  Epiphany,  Philadel¬ 
phia,  14 

Church  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  Phila¬ 
delphia,  2,  3,  7 
Church  Poetry,  51-53,  61,  230 
Church  Porch,  6 
Church  Psalmist ,  17 
Church  Times,  109 
Churchman ,  105 

Civil  War  (1861),  17,  83,  108,  180 
Clarke,  Rev.  J.  Freeman,  123 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  244-246 
Clemson,  Rev.  John  B.,  225 
Clolata  (Tune),  36 
Coleridge,  234 

Commentary  on  the  Whole  Bible,  204 
Common  metre,  12 
Compleat  Psalmodist,  151 
Composite  hymns,  148 
Confirmation  service,  254 
Congregational  Quarterly,  248 
Congregationalism  of  the  Last  Three 
Hundred  Years ,  248 
Congregationalist,  93,  246,  248 
Congregationalist  and  Recorder ,  248 
Congregationalist  hymnody,  46,  129, 
130,  256 


GENERAL  INDEX 


275 


Consecration,  212;  and  art,  217 
Consecration  hymns,  proper  use  of, 
218 

Coverdale,  Myles,  160 
Coxe,  Bishop  Arthur  C.,  73 
Crabbe,  234 
Craigie  House,  140 
Cross,  The,  in  hymnody,  59,  125, 132, 
177  ;  (processional),  107 
“  Crossing  the  Bar,”  263-272 ; 

(Tune),  266 
Cruciger,  Kaspar,  159 
Cummings,  William  H.,.105 
Curious  Myths  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
112 

Curiosities  of  the  Olden  Time,  112 
Cuyler,  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  L.,  76,  82 

Dalston,  118,  119 
Davies,  President  Samuel,  257 
“  Declining  Days,”  171 
Demeter  and  Other  Poems,  263,  264 
Dexter,  Rev.  Elijah,  247 
Dexter,  Rev.  Dr.  Henry  M.  : — his 
translation,  “  Shepherd  of  Tender 
Youth,”  243-252;  sketch  of,  247- 
250 ;  portrait  of,  249 ;  autograph 
of,  247 

Dexter,  Rev.  Morton,  249 
Dial,  The ,  164 
Dictionary  of  Hymnology ,  45 
Didactic  hymns,  210 
Disraeli  (Lord  Beaconsfield),  204 
Doane,  Bishop  George  W.,  29 
Doddridge,  Rev.  Dr.  Philip,  49 
“  Dream  of  Gerontius,”  93 
Duffield,  Rev.  George  (1st),  18; 

(2nd),  18;  (3rd),  18: — his  hymn, 
“  Stand  Up  for  Jesus,”  13-24 ; 
sketch  of,  18-21;  portrait  of,  19; 
autographs  of,  19,  23 
Duffield,  Rev.  Samuel  W.,  18,  19,  20 
Dwight,  John  S.,  179-190;  portrait 
of,  189;  autograph  of,  184 
Dwight' s  Journal  of  Music,  190 
Dykes,  Rev.  John  B.,  94 


Easter  carols,  9,  148-153 

Easter  Hymn  (Tune),  150 

Edgworth,  Thomas,  65 

Ein  Feste  Burg  (Time),  159 

Ellerton,  Rev.  John,  176 

Elliott,  Rev.  Henry  Venn,  29 

Enoch  Arden,  269 

Episcopal  Recorder,  225-226,  229 

Episcopal.  See  Protestant  Episcopal. 

Eton  College,  singing  at,  34 

Evan  (Tune),  214 

“  Evangelical  Catholic  Church,”  230 
Evangelical  Party,  7,  56,  86 
Evans,  Rev.  Caleb,  194,  195,  198 
Evening  hymns,  176 
Eventide  (Tune),  173 

Fairford,  32 

Fall  of  Jerusalem,  240 

Family  Expositor,  49 

Famous  Hymns  and  their  Authors,  260 

Faust,  189 

Fazio  :  a  Tragedy,  238 
Fletcher,  A.,  45 
Flower,  Benjamin,  118 
Flower,  Eliza,  118,  119 
Flower,  Sarah.  See  Adams. 

Flushing,  L.  I.,  230 

Fort  McHenry,  59 

Fort  Sumter,  180,  184 

Four  Georges,  68 

Four  Happy  Days,  214 

Fox,  Mrs.  Bridell,  120,  122 

Fox,  Rev.  William  J.,  1x8,  222,  123 

Fraser  s  Magazine ,  16 1 

Frederick,  Md.,  55,  56 

Frederick  (Tune),  226,  229 

Froude,  Hurrell,  88-89 

Furness,  Dr.  William  Henry,  162 

Gaine,  Hugh,  161 
Geard  (Tune),  44-45 
Gems  of  German  Verse,  163 
Georgetown,  D.  C.,  Mr.  Key  in,  56 
German  hymnody,  98-99,  160,  161, 
180 


2  y6 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Germany ,  Prose  Writers  of,  164 
Gill,  Dr.  John,  43 
Gillies,  Margaret,  121 
Gladstone,  114,  262 
God  Save  the  King  (Tune),  101,  105, 
181 

Goddard,  Rev.  Kingston,  17 
Goethe,  189 
Golden  Legend,  167 
Goostly  Psalmes  and  Spiritual 
Songes,  160 
Gordelier,  Charles,  44 
“  Gospel  ”  for  the  day,  241 
Gould.  See  Baring-Gould 
Gould,  Eliza,  119 
Gower,  Lord  Ronald,  86 
Grafton,  Life  of  Joseph,  104 
Gratitude,  Christian,  in  hymns,  52,  59 
Greek  hymns,  244,  250 
Greenland  (Tune),  24 
Greenwood,  Rev.  F.  W.  P.,  30 
Grey,  Lord,  88 

Guild,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Curtis,  Jr., 
47 

Gustavus  Adolphus,  159 

Hale,  Rev.  Edward  E.,  138 
Hallam,  Arthur,  269 
Hare,  Augustus,  70 
Harrow,  Bishop  Wordsworth  at,  203 
Hartopp,  Sir  John,  133 
Harvard  University,  Dr.  Hedge’s 
connection  with,  163 ;  class  of  1829, 
98 

Hastings,  H.  L.,  43-44,  48 
Hastings,  Thomas,  54,  78 
Havergal,  Frances  R.,  200: — her 

hymn,  “  Take  My  Life,  and  Let  it 
Be,”  211-220  ;  sketch  of,  214-218; 
portrait  of,  215  ;  autograph  of,  213 
Havergal,  Miss  M.  V.  G.,  217,  219 
Havergal,  Rev.  William  H.,  214,  217 
Hawarden,  262 
Haydn’s  tune,  St.  Alban,  109 
Heber,  Bishop  Reginald  : — his  hymn, 
“  From  Greenland’s  Icy  Moun¬ 


tains,”  63-74;  sketch  of,  68-72; 
portrait  of,  69  ;  autographs  of,  65, 
69  ;  his  Hymns,  71,  234-236,  242 
Hedge,  Rev.  Fred.  H. : — his  transla¬ 
tion,  “  A  Mighty  Fortress  is  Our 
God,”  155-168  ;  sketch  of,  162- 
167  ;  portrait  of,  165 ;  autograph 
of,  162  ;  reference  to,  246 
Heine,  159 

Henshaw,  Sarah  E.,  180,  185-186 
Hepworth,  Rev.  George  H.,  80 
Hesperus,  189 
Hickson,  William  E.,  185 
Higginson,  Thomas  W.,  141 
High  Church  Party,  30,  32,  56,  71,  87, 
no,  204,  241 

Hints  on  the  Formatio7i  of  Religious 
Opinions,  81 

History  of  Christianity ,  240 
History  of  the  Jews,  240 
History  of  Latin  Christianity ,  240 
Hitchcock,  Rev.  Dr.  Roswell  D.,  no 
Hodge,  Rev.  Dr.  Charles,  49 
Hodnet,  70 

Hogg,  Mrs.  A.  M.,  171,  176 
Holmes,  Dr.  Oliver  Wendell,  98, 105, 
I23>  144 

Holy  Year,  202,  206-208,  210 
Home  and  School  Hymnal ,  266 
Home ,  or  the  Unlost  Paradise,  81 
Hooper,  George  H.,  258 
Horder,  Rev.  W.  Garrett,  46,  196 
How,  Bishop  W.  Walsham,  124,  270 
Howard,  Mary  W.,  67-68 
Hunt,  Leigh,  121 

Huntington,  Rev.  Frederick  D.,  156, 
166,  246 

Huntington,  Rev.  George,  94 
Huntington,  Rev.  Dr.  William  R., 
S-  6 

Hursley,  32  ;  (Tune),  36 
Hutchins,  Rev.  Dr.  Charles  L.,  no 
“  Hymn  for  My  Brother’s  Ordina¬ 
tion,”  138,  142 
Hymn  Lover,  The,  46 
Hymnal  Companion ,  94 


GENERAL  INDEX 


277 


Hymnal ,  Presbyterian  (1874),  54>  110 
Hymnal ,  The  (1895).  See  Preface 
(to  this  book  reference  is  made 
throughout  as  the  textual  standard) ; 
its  notes  to  the  hymns,  154 
Hymnal  of  the  Presbyteria?i  Church 
(1866),  124,  246 

Hyimial  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  (1872),  no,  256;  (1892), 
6,-io6,  124,  231,  236 
Hymnology ,  Julian  s  Dictionary  of  ‘  45 
Hymns  : — 

alterations  of,  22,  34,  93,  106,  124, 
259 

Biblical  language  in,  48-49,  146, 
246 

churchly,  205 
composite,  148 
didactic,  210 
egotistical,  205,  209 
form  proper  to,  12,  271 
literary  merit  of,  125,  135,  234, 
256,  267 

as  liturgical  verse,  206,  257 
and  lyrical  poetry,  256 
memorizing  of,  9-10 
military,  21,  108 

of  personal  experience,  77,  205, 
209 

poetic  merit  of,  73,  84,  125,  234, 
256 

prejudice  against,  128  ;  introduc¬ 
tion  into  Church  of  England, 
64,  71,  129,  152,  234-236;  in¬ 
troduction  into  American  Con¬ 
gregational  and  Presbyterian 
Churches,  129,  237 
private  use  of,  195,  205,  231 
processional,  115 
vs.  Psalms,  128 
teaching-power  of,  206,  209 
translated,  161,  250 
of  Watts  as  models  for  his  suc¬ 
cessors,  128 

Bishop  Wordsworth  on  the  char¬ 
acter  of,  205 


Hymns  Ancient  and  Modern  (1861), 
109,  no,  173,  177;  Appendix  to 
(1868),  93,  94,  108,  109,  no 
Hymns  and  Anthems,  118,  1 22-1 23 
Hymns  and  Sacred  Pieces,  76,  81 
Hymns  and  Songs  of  Praise,  no 
Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs  (Watts), 
127-129,  200,  237  ;  see  frontispiece. 
Hymns  for  the  Church  of  Christ,  156, 
163,  166,  246 

Hymns  of  My  Holy  Hours,  81 
Hymns  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  (1827),  54,  221,  226,  229, 
236 

Hymns  of  the  Spirit,  137,  142,  143 
Hymns  Written  and  Adapted  to  the 
Weekly  Church  Service,  71,  234- 
236,  242 

Iceland  :  Its  Scenes  audits  Sagas,  112 
Imitation s  of  the  Psalms ,  by  Watts, 
129 

In  Memoriam,  267,  272 
Independent,  105,  106 
India,  70,  73 
Ingoldsby  Legends,  238 
Instructor,  The,  245 

Jacobi,  J.  C.,  161 

Jayne's  Hall  Meetings,  Philadelphia, 
14,  22 

John,  Elector  of  Saxony,  158 
“  John  Brown’s  Body,"  180 
Johnson,  Dr.,  134 
Johnson,  Rev.  Samuel,  92,  137,  138 
Jonas,  Dr.  Justus,  159 
Jones,  Francis  Arthur,  237,  260 
Journal  of  a  Voyage  to  India,  72 
Jowett,  Rev.  Dr.  Benjamin,  267 
Julian,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  43,  45 
Juvenile  Lyre,  101 

“  K - ”  in  Rippon’s  “  Selection,” 

38,  40-46 
Keats,  234 
Keble  (Tune),  36 


278 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Keble,  Rev.  John  his  hymn,  “Sun 
of  My  Soul,  Thou  Saviour  Dear," 
25_3^  ;  sketch  of,  30-34  ;  portrait 
°f>  31 !  autograph  of,  27  ;  references 
to,  87,  92,  96,  177,  206-207,  235 
Keene,  R.,  43,  44,  45,  48 
Keith,  George,  43 
Ken,  Bishop,  34 

Key,  Francis  S. his  hymn,  “  Lord, 
with  Glowing  Heart  I’d  Praise 
Thee,"  51-61  ;  sketch  of,  55-59  ; 
portrait  of,  57;  autographs  of,  53, 
57 

Key,  John  Ross,  55 
Kingsley,  Rev.  Charles,  92 
Kingsley,  George,  226,  229 
“  Kirkham,”  42 
Kostlin,  Julius,  158 
Kunze,  Rev.  Dr.  John  C.,  161 

Lancashire  (Tune),  24 
Lancaster,  Pa.,  Dr.  Muhlenberg  at, 
224,  230 

Latin  hymns,  47,  93,  148,  149,  250 
Leavitt,  Rev.  Joshua,  54 
Lee,  General  Robert  E.,  48 
Legends  of  the  Old  Testament ,  112 
Leipzig,  Battle  of,  159 
Lew  Trenchard,  112,  114 
Liberal  hymns,  144 ;  Singers  and 
Songs  of  the  Liberal  Faith ,  181, 
186,  188 
Lick,  James,  58 

Literary  merit  in  hymns,  125,  135, 
234>  256,  267 
Liturgical  poetry,  206,  257 
Lives  of  the  Saints,  112 
Lloyd,  Mary  Tayloe,  56 
London,  Milman  in,  241 
Longfellow,  Henry  W.,  138,  140,  142, 
167 

Longfellow,  Rev.  Samuel,  92,  123  : — 
his  hymn,  “  O  Still  in  Accents  Sweet 
and  Strong,"  137-146  ;  sketch  of, 
I38“i43  I  portrait  of,  141 ;  auto¬ 
graph  of,  145 


Lord’s  Day  hymns,  208,  209 
Lover  s  Tale,  266 
Loyal  Responses ,  217 
Luther,  Dr.  Martin  his  hymn, 
“  Ein’  Feste  Burg  ist  Unser  Gott," 
i55~i68  ;  portrait  and  autograph 
157 

Lutheran  hymnody,  160,  161 
Liitzen,  Battle  of,  159 
Lux  Benigna  (Tune),  94 
Lyra  Apostolica,  85,  91,  92 
Lyra  Davidica,  149-151,  160 
Lyra  Innocentium,  33 
Lyre,  The  Christian ,  54 
Lyrical  poetry  and  hymns,  256 
Lyte,  Rev.  Henry  F.  : — his  hymn, 
“  Abide  with  Me,"  169-178  ;  sketch 
of,  173-176  ;  portrait  of,  175  ;  auto¬ 
graphs  of,  171,  175 

McCauley,  Richard,  5 
Macgill,  Rev.  H.  M.,  251 
Macllvaine,  Bishop,  16 
McKinley,  President,  125 
Maclaren,  Ian,  135 
Magnificat,  244 

Manchester,  N.  H.,  Dr.  Dexter  at, 
246 

Mann,  Dr.  M.  D.,  125 
Manning,  Cardinal,  202 
Marseillaise,  The,  159 
Martineau,  Harriet,  119 
Martyr  of  Antioch,  235,  240 
Mary,  the  Song  of,  244 
Mason,  Lowell : — beginning  of  his 
career,  68  ;  in  Boston,  78,  99,  101, 
124,  184;  references  to,  82,  84,  179, 
183,  186,  187,  188,  208 
Maude,  Mary  F.  : — her  hymn, 

“  Thine  For  Ever !"  253-262 ; 

sketch  of,  258  ;  portrait  of,  259  ; 
autographs  of,  255,  259 
Maude,  Rev.  Joseph,  258 
Meade,  Bishop,  58 
Melancholy  poetry,  222 
Melanchthon,  159 


GENERAL  INDEX 


279 


Memorials  of  a  Quiet  Life ,  70 
Memorials  of  Past  Years ,  258 
Mendebras  (Tune),  208 
Merle  d'Aubigne,  158 
Military  hymns,  their  popularity,  21, 
108 

Milman,  Arthur,  238,  241 
Milman,  Sir  Francis,  238 
Milman,  Dean  Henry  H.,  71 his 
hymn,  “  O  Help  Us,  Lord,  233- 
242  ;  sketch  of,  238-241  ;  portrait 
of,  239;  autographs  of,  237,  239 
Milnor,  Rev.  Dr.  James,  77 
Ministry  of  Song ,  217 
Missionary  Hymn  (Tune),  68 
Missionary  hymns,  64,  68,  73~74 
Missionary  movement  in  nineteenth 
century,  73 

Missionary  Sketches ,  104 
Mitford,  Miss.,  238 
Monk,  William  Henry,  173 
Montgomery,  James,  128,  235 
Monthly  Repository ,  120 
“  Moonlight  Sonata,”  216 
Moore,  Thomas,  233 
Morbid  views  of  life  in  hymns,  222, 
231 

Morgan,  Rev.  John,  130 
Muhlenberg,  Frederick  A.,  229-230 
Muhlenberg,  Rev.  Dr.  Henry  M.,  229 
Muhlenberg,  Rev.  Dr.  William  A., 
51-54,  61  : — his  hymn,  “  I  Would 
Not  LiveAlway,”  221-232;  sketch 
of,  229-231  ;  portrait  of,  229  ;  auto¬ 
graphs  of,  225,  229 
Murray,  John,  234 
Musical  Times,  no 

Nash,  Sylvester,  52 
National  Anthem,  the,  105 ;  national 
hymn,  102,  105,  179 
Nelson,  Horatio,  Earl,  33 
New  York,  Ray  Palmer  in,  76-77 ; 

Dr.  Muhlenberg  in,  230 
Newark,  Ray  Palmer  in,  80 
Newdigate  prize.  69,  238 


Newman,  John,  86 
Newman,  Cardinal  John  H.,  31, 
32  : — his  hymn,  “  Lead,  Kindly 
Light,”  85-96  ;  sketch  of,  86-93 ; 
portraits  of,  87,  95  I  autograph  of, 
9i 

Newton  Centre,  Dr.  Smith  at,  102 
Newtofi,  Mass.,  History  of,  104 
Nice,  Lyte's  grave  at,  172,  175 
Noonday  prayer-meetings  in  Phila¬ 
delphia,  14 

North,  Christopher,  175,  267 

Old  Diaries ,  86 

Oliphant,  Mrs.  M.  O.  W.,  272 

Olivet  (Tune),  78 

Onderdonk,  Bishop  Henry  U.,  226 
Origin  and  Development  of  Religious 
Belief,  112 

Other-wordliness,  231 
Outlook,  99 

Oxford  movement,  32,  92 
Oxford  University,  Keble  and  New¬ 
man  at,  30-32,  87,  91-92 ;  Heber 
at,  69;  Milman  at,  238 

Palermo,  90 
Palestine,  67,  69 

Palmer,  Rev.  Dr.  Ray  : — his  hymn, 
“  My  Faith  Looks  Up  to  Thee, 
75-84 ;  sketch  of,  80-83  ;  portrait 
of,  83  ;  autograph  of,  79 
Palmer,  Roundell  (Lord  Selborne), 

34 

Palmer,  Thomas,  80 
Pantsenus,  245 

Park  Street  Church,  Boston,  80,  101 
Parker,  Theodore,  138 
Parlor  music  era  of  psalmody,  226 
Patmos  (Tune),  214  220 
Peel,  Sir  Robert,  203 
Philadelphia,  ‘‘The  Work  of  God” 
in,  14-17;  Phillips  Brooks  in,  2-5, 
7  ;  Dr.  Duffield  in,  20 
Pick,  Rev.  Dr.  Bernhard,  161 
Pilgrim  Fathers,  105-106,  248 


28o 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Plymouth,  248 

Plymouth  Collection ,  30,  124,  173 
Poems  by  Two  Brothers ,  266 
Poems  Chiefly  Lyrical ,  267 
Poetic  merit  in  hymns,  73,  84,  125, 
234,  256 

Portland,  the  Longfellows  in,  138 
Portuguese  Hymn  (Tune),  47 
Prayer  Book,  10,  27,  28, 152,  206,  241, 
254 

Prayer  Book  Collection ,  10,  109 
Presbyterian  Historical  Society,  55 
Presbyterian  Hymnal  (1866),  124, 
246;  (1874),  54,  no;  (1895),  see 
Preface  (to  this  book  all  textual 
references  are  made)  ;  its  notes  to 
the  hymns,  154 

Presbyterian  hymnody,  46,  54,  106, 

no,  125,  129,  173,  177,  256,  266 
Price,  Rev.  Mr.,  130 
Processionals,  115 

Professor  at  the  Breakfast  Table ,  123 
Promise  of  May,  267 
Proper  tunes,  46-48,  153 
Protestaiit  Episcopal  Church,  Hymns 

of,  (1827),  54,  22i,  226,  229,  236 
Protestant  Episcopal  Hymnal  (1872), 

no,  256;  (1892),  6,  106,  124,  231, 
236 

Protestant  Episcopal  hymnody,  6,  52, 
54,  106,  109-110,  194,  223,  226,  230, 
236 

Psalm  XLVI.,  160,  167 
Psalmist,  104,  236 
Psalmodia  Germanica,  161 
Psalmody,  Havergal’s,  217 
Psalms  as  the  only  subject  matter  of 
praise,  128 

Psalms  imitated  by  Watts,  129 
Psalms,  metrical,  71,  128,  152,  194; 
Keble's  version,  33 ;  Tate  and 
Brady’s,  147,  152 

Psalms  and  Hymns  (Prayer  Book 
Collection),  10,  109 
Psaltery,  187 
Pusey,  Dr.,  32 


Putnam's  Singers  and  Songs  of  the 
Liberal  Faith ,  181,  186,  188 

Quarterly  Review,  70,  234 
Quemados,  Cuba,  Christmas  at,  47 

Radical  hymns,  142,  144 
Raffles,  Rev.  Dr.  Thomas,  66 
Random  Recollections,  94 
Reading,  John,  46 
Reading  Daily  Times,  167 
Rebellion  (1861),  17,  83,  108,  180 
Recollections  of  a  Long  Life,  82 
Redner,  Lewis  H.,  3-6,  n  ;  portrait 
of,  5  ;  autograph  of,  7 
Reed,  Rev.  Andrew,  78 
Reformation,  the,  158-160 ;  Merle 
d’Aubigne’s  History  of,  158 
Resurrection  of  Christ,  147 
Revival  of  1857-58,  14 
Revolutionary  War,  18,  109 
Richter,  189 

Rippon,  Rev.  John,  38,44;  portrait 
of,  39 

Rippon  s  Selection,  38-42,  46,  194 
Rippon  s  Tune  Book,  43 
Robinson,  Rev.  Dr.  Charles  S.,  92- 
93,  208,  256 
Rock  of  Ages,  104 
Roman  Catholic  hymnody,  47,  86 
Rowe,  Rev.  Thomas,  132 
Royal  Progress,  The,  120 
Russel],  Joshua  T.,  53 

Sabbath  Hymn  Book,  17,  22,  30,  236 
Sabbath  Hymn  and  Tune  Book,  24, 
124 

San  Francisco,  58 

St.  Alban  (Tune),  109 

St.  Gertrude  (Tune),  no 

St.  Johnland,  230,  231 

St.  Louis  (Tune),  4,  5 

St.  Luke’s  Hospital,  N.  Y.,  230-231 

St.  Mary’s,  Oxford,  87 

St.  Paul’s,  London,  241 

Salisbury  Hymn  Book,  29,  33 


GENERAL  INDEX 


28l 


Samor,  240 
Saturday  Club,  190 
Savannah,  Ga.,  Lowell  Mason  in, 
67-68 

Schaff,  Rev.  Dr.  Philip,  no,  222,  246 
Scherer,  W.,  158 
Scott,  Sir  Walter,  69,  235,  236 
Scottish  Church  Hymnary ,  125,  266 
Scripture,  Holy,  in  hymnody,  199 
Sedgwick,  Daniel,  42-43,  185,  195 
Selborne,  Lord  (Roundell  Palmer),  34 
Shelley,  234 
Shipley,  Dean,  64 
Sicily,  Newman  in,  89 
Sidney,  Sir  Philip,  76 
Singers  and  Songs  of  the  Liberal  Faith, 
181,  186,  188 
Singing  Master,  185 
Slavery,  Mr.  Key  and,  157-158 
Smith,  Rev.  Dr.  Samuel  F. : — his 
hymn,  “America,”  97-106;  sketch 
of,  102-104  ;  portrait  of,  103  ;  auto¬ 
graph  of,  100 

Songs  for  the  Sanctuary ,  92,  208,  256 
Songs  of  Grace  and  Glory ,  212,  217 
Songs  of  Pilgrimage,  43-44 
Songs  of  the  West,  112 
Southey,  Robert,  235,  236 
Spalatin,  156 
Spanish  War,  47 
Spirit  of  the  Psalms,  176 
Spiritual  Songs  for  Social  Worship, 
78,  84,  101 
Stanley,  Dean,  20 
Star  Spangled  Banner,  52,  55,  58 
Steele,  Anne  : — her  hymn,  “  Father 
of  Mercies,  in  Thy  Word,”  191- 
200  ;  sketch  of,  196-198  ;  autograph 

of,  193 

Steele,  William,  196 
Stewart,  Benedict  D.,  17 
Stockton,  Rev.  Thomas  H.,  16 
Stone,  Rev.  Samuel  J.,  115 
Strand  Magazine,  237 
Sullivan,  Sir  Arthur,  no,  176 
Sun  of  My  Soul  (Tune),  36 


Sunday  hymns,  208,  209 
Sunday-school  hymnody,  3,  6,  99, 
109,  no 

Sunday  School  Times ,  47 
Sursum  Cor  da,  195 

Tabb,  John  B.,  270 
Tales  on  the  Lord' s  Prayer,  175 
Tate  and  Brady’s  Version  of  the 
Psalms,  147,  152 
Taylor,  Jeremy,  70 
Tennyson,  Alfred,  Lord,  73,  217  : — 
his  hymn,  “  Sunset  and  Evening 
Star,”  263-272 ;  sketch  of,  266- 
268  ;  portrait  of,  269 ;  autograph 
of,  265 

Tennyson,  Charles,  266 
Tennyson,  Hallam  (2nd  Lord),  272; 

his  Memoir  of  his  father,  264,  268 
Tennyson,  Lionel,  269 
Thackeray,  68 
Theobalds,  134 
Theodosia,  191,  192,  195,  200 
Thine  For  Ever  (Tune),  262 
Thom,  John  H.,  28 
Thoughtless  hymn  singing,  34,  125 
Titan,  189 

Toplady,  Rev.  Augustus  M.,  131 
Transcendental  movement,  164 
Translated  hymns,  161,  250 
Trinity  Church,  Boston,  8  ;  its  parish 
hymn  book,  194 
Tunes  : — 

Abends,  36 
Adeste  Fideles,  47 
America,  101,  105,  181 
Bethany,  124 
Clolata,  36 

Crossing  the  Bar,  266 
Easter  Hymn,  150 
Ein’  Feste  Burg,  159 
Evan,  214 
Eventide,  173 
Frederick,  226,  229 
Geard,  44-45 

God  Save  the  King,  101,  105,  181 


282 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Tunes : — 

Greenland,  24 
Hursley,  36 
Keble,  36 
Lancashire,  24 
Lux  Benigna,  94 
Mendebras,  208 
Missionary  Hymn,  68 
Olivet,  78 
Patmos,  214,  220 
Portuguese  Hymn,  47 
St.  Alban,  109 
St.  Gertrude,  no 
St.  Louis,  4,  5 
Sun  of  My  Soul,  36 
Thine  For  Ever,  262 
’Twas  When  the  Seas  Were 
Roaring,  66 
Webb,  24 
Zoan,  214 

Tunes  : — of  Anglican  school,  68,  no; 
of  parlor  music  era,  226;  “proper,” 
46-48,  IS3-I54 

'Twas  When  the  Seas  Were  Roaring 
(Tune),  66 

Twells,  Canon  Henry,  136 
Twelve  Letters  on  Confirmation ,  258 
Tyler,  General  Daniel,  180 
Tyng,  Rev.  Dudley  A.,  14-18,  22; 
portrait  of,  15 

Tyng,  Rev.  Dr.  Stephen  H.,  18 

Under  the  Surface ,  217 
Unitarian  hymnody,  30,  138,  142,  144, 
166,  236 

Verses  on  Various  Occasions,  85 

Vivia  Perpetua ,  120 

Voices  of  Hope  and  Gladness,  81 

Walker,  Thomas,  43-45 
Walsh,  J.,  149 

War  of  Revolution,  18, 109  ;  of  1812, 
58  ;  of  Rebellion,  17,  83,  108,  180  ; 
Spanish,  47 
Ward,  Ann  M.,  81 
Ward,  Rev.  Dr.  William  Hayes,  80 


Watson,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  135 
Watts,  Enoch,  130 
Watts,  Dr.  Isaac,  38,  128-129,  200, 
234,  237: — his  hymn,  “When  I 
Survey  the  Wondrous  Cross,”  127- 
136  ;  sketch  of,  132-134 ;  portrait  of, 
133  ;  autographs  of,  131,  133  ;  title- 
page  of  his  Hymns,  frontispiece. 
Waits  and  Select,  237 
Webb  (Tune),  24 
Webb,  W.  Trego,  270 
Weimar,  159 
Wellington,  Duke  of,  202 
Wendte,  Rev.  C.  W.,  181 
Wesley,  Rev.  Charles,  153,  154 
Wesley,  Rev.  John,  135 
Wesleyan  hymnody,  46 
Westminster  Abbey,  Bishop  Words¬ 
worth  at,  203  ;  Tennyson’s  funeral 
in,  264,  272 

Westminster  Church,  Bloomfield,  N. 

J-  19 

White,  Bishop  William,  226,  230 
Whitefield,  Rev.  George,  45 
Whittier,  139,  168 
Wiseman,  Monsignor,  89 
Wittenberg,  158-159 
Woodbridge,  William  C.,  98 
Wordsworth,  Rev.  Dr.  Christopher, 
202 

Wordsworth,  Bishop  Christopher  : — 
his  hymn,  “O  Day  of  Rest  and 
Gladness,”  201-2x0;  sketch  of, 
202-206 ;  portrait  of,  203  ;  auto¬ 
graph  of,  207  ;  reference  to,  257 
Wordsworth,  William,  206,  235,  271 
Worgan,  Dr.,  151 

“Work  of  God  in  Philadelphia,” 
14-17 

Worms,  Luther  at,  156 
Wrexham,  64-66 

Young  Men’s  Christian  Association, 
14 

Zimmerman,  Thomas  I.,  167 
Zoan  (Tune),  214 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  FINES  OF  HYMNS 


[  Those  which  are  the  subjects  of  the  Studies  are  printed  in  Italics .] 


A  mighty  Fortress  is  our  God . 

A  bide  with  me  :  fast  falls  the  eventide . 

Adeste  fideles . 

Again,  as  evening’s  shadow  falls . 

All  praise  to  Thee,  my  God,  this  night . 

Almighty  God,  Thy  word  is  cast . 

Arm  these,  Thy  soldiers,  mighty  Lord . 

Beneath  Thine  hammer,  Lord,  I  lie . 

Bridle  of  untamed  colts . 

Christ  to  the  young  man  said . 

Em  Feste  Bitrg  ist  Unser  Go  ft . 

Father  of  mercies ,  in  Thy  word . 

Father,  whate’er  of  earthly  bliss . 

From  Greenland' s  icy  mountains . 

Glory  to  Thee,  my  God,  this  night . . 

God  bless  oitr  native  land . 

God  save  our  gracious  king . 

God,  the  Lord,  a  King  remaineth . 

Golden  harps  are  sounding . 

Hark  !  what  mean  those  holy  voices . 

Holy  Spirit,  Truth  Divine- . »• . 

How  firm  a  foundation ,  ye  saints  of  the  Lord . 
I  would  not  live  alway  ;  I  ask  not  to  stay .... 
In  songs  of  sublime  adoration  and  praise .... 


PAGE 

- 155-168 

.... I69-I78 

47 

....  144 

34 

....  214 

....  257 

-  166 

-  -250 

- 138,  142 

- 155-168 

....  191-200 
195 

• -63-74,  234 

'  •  •  •  34 

106,  179-190 

TOI,  IO5,  l8l 

33 

...  217 

.  .  . .  214 

. .  . .  144 

-  37-5° 

. ...  22 1—232 

. . .  .  40 


283 


284  INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS 

PAGE 

Jesus,  I  my  cross  have  taken. .  x7^ 

Jesus  Christ  is  risen  to-day . I47“I54 

Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea .  29 

Lead ,  kindly  Light,  amid  the  encircling  gloom . 

85-96,  126,  138,  271 

Lord,  I  am  Thine,  entirely  Thine .  257 

Lord,  with  glowing  heart  /’ d  praise  Thee .  5i_6i 

My  country,  Lis  of  thee .  97—106 

My  faith  looks  up  to  Thee .  75_^4 

Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee .  117—126 

New  every  morning  is  the  love .  28 

Now  I  resolve  with  all  my  heart. .  195 

Now  the  day  is  over .  114 

Now,  when  the  dusky  shades  of  night,  retreating.  ...  166 

O  come,  all  ye  faithful .  47 

O  day  of  rest  and  gladness . . . 201-2 10 

O  help  us,  Lord ;  each  hour  of  need . 233-242 

O  little  town  of  Bethlehem .  1-12 

O  still  in  accents  sweet  and  strong .  13J—146 

Onward,  Christian  soldiers .  107-116 

Praise  to  the  Holiest  in  the  height .  93 

Ride  on,  ride  on  in  majesty . 235,  242 

Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me .  131 

Saviour,  sprinkle  many  nations .  73 

Shepherd  of  tender  youth . 243-252 

Stand  up  for  Jesus  !  Strengthen’d  by  His  hand .  17 

Stand  up,  stand  up  for  Jesus . 13-23,  IX5 

Sun  of  my  soul,  Thou  Saviour  dear . 25 -3 6, 177 

Sunset  and  evening  star . 263-272 

Surrexit  Christus  hodie .  148 

Take  my  life,  and  let  it  be . 2 11-220 

The  Bible  is  justly  esteemed .  4° 

The  Church’s  one  Foundation . 115 

The  morning  light  is  breaking .  104 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS  285 

PAGE 

The  voice  that  breathed  o’er  Eden . .  33 

Thine  for  ever  /  God  of  love .  . 253-262 


Thou  Framer  of  the  light  and  dark.  .  .  , 
Through  the  night  of  doubt  and  sorrow 


Thyself,  Lord,  be  the  Bridle . .  251 

’Tis  gone,  that  bright  and  orbed  blaze .  28,  30 

’Twas  the  day  when  God’s  Anointed .  166 

What  a  Friend  we  have  in  Jesus .  43 

When  I  survey  the  wondrous  cross . 127-136 

When  our  heads  are  bowed  with  woe .  242 


. 


